verb
sullabamō
Strong’sG4815
I seize, apprehend, become pregnant
stem sullab-16 times in the New Testamentin 7 of 27 books13 forms occur
What it means
A plain-English reading of the word, with the lexicons it draws on — Abbott-Smith, Strong's, and Liddell-Scott-Jones — right below it, in full.
AI Summary
To seize, arrest, or take into custody — used of laying hold of a person, especially to make an arrest 1234, and also of catching or collecting something, such as a catch of fish 1.
To help or assist, taking part with someone, used with a person in the dative case in the sense of giving aid or support 123.
To conceive, become pregnant, said of a woman 1234; used literally of an actual pregnancy 13, and also figuratively of desire producing sin 1.
Sources: 1 Abbott-Smith 2 Strong's 3 LSJ 4 Dodson. Condensed by anthropic/claude-sonnet-5 on 2026-09-23 — it may still misstate what these say; check them yourself if it matters to you.
The lexicons it was drawn from, in full:
Abbott-Smith — the 1922 lexicon entry, in full
συλ-λαμβάνω
[in LXX for תּפשׂ, הרה, etc.;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G4815 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidsool-lam-ban'-o
to clasp, i.e. seize (arrest, capture); specially, to conceive (literally or figuratively); by implication, to aid
King Jamescatch, conceive, help, take.
James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, 1890 — public domain. The numbers in it link to the entries here.
Liddell-Scott-Jones — the classical dictionary this word appears in
future -λήψομαι: perfect -είληφα, passive -είλημμαι: aorist συνέλᾰβον, infinitive συλλᾰβεῖν:—middle, present in Refs 4th c.BC+: aorist συνελαβόμην Refs 5th c.BC+:—passive (see. below; in Refs 5th c.BC+:—collect, gather together, especially rally scattered troops, τῆς στρατιῆς τοὺς περιγενομένους Refs 5th c.BC+
2 take with one, carry off, Refs 5th c.BC+; συλλαβὼν θεσπίσματα κεῖται παρ᾽ Ἅιδῃ with all his prophecies, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἔκπλει σεαυτὸν συλλαβὼν ἐκ τῆσδε γῆς pack yourself off, Refs
3 put together, close, τὸ στόμα καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς (of a corpse) Refs 5th c.BC+; ξ. αὐτοῦ τὸ στόμα shut his mouth, Refs 5th c.BC+; enclose, τῇ ἐπιδέσει συλλαμβάνοντα συνάγειν τοὺς μηρούς Refs 2nd c.AD+
3.b combine in pronunciation, λέγε δὴ μόλωμεν ξυνεχὲς ὡδὶ ξυλλαβών say αὐτὸ μόλωμεν as one word, Refs 5th c.BC+
4 in speaking, comprehend, comprise, ἑνὶ ἔπεϊ πάντα συλλαβόντα εἰπεῖν Refs 5th c.BC+.; εἰς ἓν πάντα σ. Refs 5th c.BC+:—passive, to be comprehended (logically), μετὰ τοῦ γένους αἱ συλλαμβανόμεναι διαφοραί Refs 4th c.BC+; σὺν τῇ ὕλῃ συνειλημμένος, i.e. concrete, opposed to abstract, Refs
II lay hands on, seize, ὁλκάδας Refs 7th c.BC+; ξ. τῶν σχοινίων lay hold of them, help to pull, Refs 5th c.BC+ —middle, τίς ξυλλάβοιτ᾽ ἂν τοῦ ξύλο; Refs
II.b buy up, τὰ τρύβλια Refs
II.2 seize the person of.., apprehend, arrest, Refs 5th c.BC+; σ. ζῶντα, ὅμηρον, Refs 5th c.BC+; συλλαβόντας αὐτὸν ἴσχειν seize and hold him, Refs 4th c.BC+ — passive, πρὶν ξυλληφθῆναι before they were arrested, Refs 5th c.BC+
II.3 of the mind, grasp the meaning of, comprehend, τὸ χρηστήριον, τὸ ῥηθέν, τὸν λόγον, τὴν φωνήν, Refs 5th c.BC+
III receive at the same time, enjoy together, Refs 5th c.BC+
IV of females, conceive, Refs 5th c.BC+; of the womb, σ. τὸ σπέρμα Refs 4th c.BC+ near to be delivered, LXX
V take with or besides, take as an assistant, τὴν δίκην σ. Refs 5th c.BC+
VI with dative person, take pert with another, assist him, οὐ τοῖς ἀθύμοις ἡ τύχη ξ. Refs 5th c.BC+; τὰ δυνατὰ τῇ πόλει ξ. Refs 5th c.BC+; σ. τισί τι take part with or assist them in a thing, Refs 5th c.BC+ contributed towards persuading, Refs 5th c.BC+: absolutely, assist, Refs 5th c.BC+; δεῖ δὲ ξυλλαμβάνοντα τοὺς θεοὺς ἐπικαλέεσθαι while invoking the gods one must help oneself, Refs 5th c.BC+
VI.2 middle, c.genitive of things, take part in, συνελάβοντο τοῦ στρατεύματος Refs 5th c.BC+; ξυνελάβοντο τοῦ τοιούτου οὐχ ἥκιστα, ὥστε.. especially contributed to this, Refs 5th c.BC+ intervene in a storm together with circumstance, Refs 5th c.BC+
H. G. Liddell, R. Scott, H. S. Jones, A Greek-English Lexicon (9th ed., 1925–1940) — digitised by the Perseus Digital Library and corrected and expanded by Tyndale House, Cambridge, via STEPBible-Data's TFLSJ table, CC BY 4.0. Covers all of Greek literature, not just the Bible.
Translated as
Every occurrence, sorted by the English it was actually given — the evidence for what the word means, not a gloss of it.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), dedicated to the public domain — berean.bible.
Biblang forms
What the New Testament actually uses, first — the whole system this verb is built from is one click further down.
| Form and the Greek behind it | What it is | Usually | Times |
|---|---|---|---|
| sullabesiσυλλήμψῃ | will happen · youfuture middle indicative 2nd person singular | conceive | 1× |
| sullabataσυνέλαβεν | happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular | conceived | 1× |
| sullabalaσυνέλαβον | happened · theyaorist active indicative 3rd person plural | taken | 2× |
| sullabatēσυνείληφεν | has happened · he/she/itperfect active indicative 3rd person singular | conceived | 1× |
| sullabosōrσυλλαμβάνου | happening now · youpresent middle or passive imperative 2nd person singular | help | 1× |
| sullabaraσυλλαβεῖν | happened · the “to …” formaorist active infinitive | capture | 3× |
| sullaberaσυλλαβέσθαι | happened · the “to …” formaorist middle infinitive | help | 1× |
| sullabiraσυλλημφθῆναι | happened · the “to …” formaorist passive infinitive | conceived | 1× |
| sullabarantasσυλλαβοῦσα | happened · subjectaorist active participle nominative singular feminine | conceived | 1× |
| sullabarantoisΣυλλαβόντες | happened · subjectaorist active participle nominative plural masculine | seized | 1× |
| sullabarantoiσυλλαβοῦσιν | happened · to, foraorist active participle dative plural masculine | arrested | 1× |
| sullaberantoisσυλλαβόμενοι | happened · subjectaorist middle participle nominative plural masculine | seized | 1× |
| sullabirantonσυλλημφθέντα | happened · objectaorist passive participle accusative singular masculine | seized | 1× |
Every form the New Testament uses, in paradigm order. What the system can build beyond them — the whole of this verb, whether the text happens to use it or not — is in the tables below.
Every form the system can build — all 204, by mood, including the ones the New Testament never uses
Statements — indicative mood, 5 occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabamō | sullabame | sullabami | sullabama | sullabamē | sullabamelē |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabasō | sullabase | sullabasi | sullabasa | sullabasē | sullabaselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabatō | sullabate | sullabati | sullabata1×συνέλαβεν | sullabatē1×συνείληφεν | sullabatelē |
| we 1st person plural | sullabanō | sullabane | sullabani | sullabana | sullabanē | sullabanelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabavō | sullabave | sullabavi | sullabava | sullabavē | sullabavelē |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabalō | sullabale | sullabali | sullabala2×συνέλαβον | sullabalē | sullabalelē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | was happening imperfect | has happened perfect | had happened pluperfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabomō | sullabome | sullabomē | sullabomelē |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabosō | sullabose | sullabosē | sullaboselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabotō | sullabote | sullabotē | sullabotelē |
| we 1st person plural | sullabonō | sullabone | sullabonē | sullabonelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabovō | sullabove | sullabovē | sullabovelē |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabolō | sullabole | sullabolē | sullabolelē |
acts on or for itself middle voice
| Who person | will happen future | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabemi | sullabema |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabesi1×συλλήμψῃ | sullabesa |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabeti | sullabeta |
| we 1st person plural | sullabeni | sullabena |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabevi | sullabeva |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabeli | sullabela |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | will happen future | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabimi | sullabima |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabisi | sullabisa |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabiti | sullabita |
| we 1st person plural | sullabini | sullabina |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabivi | sullabiva |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabili | sullabila |
May, might — subjunctive mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabameiō | sullabameia | sullabameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabaseiō | sullabaseia | sullabaseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabateiō | sullabateia | sullabateiē |
| we 1st person plural | sullabaneiō | sullabaneia | sullabaneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabaveiō | sullabaveia | sullabaveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabaleiō | sullabaleia | sullabaleiē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabomeiō | sullabomeiē |
| you 2nd person singular | sullaboseiō | sullaboseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullaboteiō | sullaboteiē |
| we 1st person plural | sullaboneiō | sullaboneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullaboveiō | sullaboveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | sullaboleiō | sullaboleiē |
acts on or for itself middle voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabemeia |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabeseia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabeteia |
| we 1st person plural | sullabeneia |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabeveia |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabeleia |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabimeia |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabiseia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabiteia |
| we 1st person plural | sullabineia |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabiveia |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabileia |
Commands — imperative mood, 1 occurrence
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | sullabasōr | sullabasar | sullabasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabatōr | sullabatar | sullabatēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabavōr | sullabavar | sullabavēr |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabalōr | sullabalar | sullabalēr |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | sullabosōr1×συλλαμβάνου | sullabosēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabotōr | sullabotēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabovōr | sullabovēr |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabolōr | sullabolēr |
acts on or for itself middle voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | sullabesar |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabetar |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabevar |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabelar |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | sullabisar |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabitar |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabivar |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabilar |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabamoiō | sullabamoia |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabasoiō | sullabasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabatoiō | sullabatoia |
| we 1st person plural | sullabanoiō | sullabanoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabavoiō | sullabavoia |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabaloiō | sullabaloia |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabomoiō |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabosoiō |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabotoiō |
| we 1st person plural | sullabonoiō |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabovoiō |
| they 3rd person plural | sullaboloiō |
acts on or for itself middle voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabemoia |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabesoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabetoia |
| we 1st person plural | sullabenoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabevoia |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabeloia |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | sullabimoia |
| you 2nd person singular | sullabisoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | sullabitoia |
| we 1st person plural | sullabinoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | sullabivoia |
| they 3rd person plural | sullabiloia |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 5 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | sullabarō | sullabari | sullabara3×συλλαβεῖν | sullabarē |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | sullaborō | sullaborē | ||
| acts on or for itself middle voice | sullaberi | sullabera1×συλλαβέσθαι | ||
| acted on passive voice | sullabiri | sullabira1×συλλημφθῆναι |
Used as an adjective — participle, 5 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | sullabarōntos | sullabarintos | sullabarantos3× | sullabarēntos |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | sullaborōntos | sullaborēntos | ||
| acts on or for itself middle voice | sullaberintos | sullaberantos1× | ||
| acted on passive voice | sullabirintos | sullabirantos1× |
Each is given in the form it takes as a subject. From there a participle carries the ordinary noun endings, in every case, number and gender — so these four columns are the whole of what the verb contributes.
How every form is built — the slots that make them
sullab is this word in every one of its forms. The slots after it make all the rest.
same in every form varies — every value shown
Where it appears
Every verse the word appears in, filed under the form it takes there.
16 occurrences, every one of them listed
sullabesi“conceive”will happen · youfuture middle indicative 2nd person singular1×
Luke 1:31kai idou sullabesi en gastra kai tiktesi huion, kai …Behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son …
sullabata“conceived”happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular1×
Luke 1:24“conceived”Meta de houtain tain hēmerain sullabata Elisabet tas gunaikas autou; kai perikrubate …After these days, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five …
sullabala“taken”happened · theyaorist active indicative 3rd person plural2×
Luke 5:9… epi ta agra toiu ichthoiu hoiu sullabala,… the catch of fish they had taken,
John 18:12… chiliarchos kai tois hupēretois toiu Ioudaioiu sullabala ton Iēsun kai dala auton… and the officers of the Jews, arrested Jesus and bound Him.
sullabatē“conceived”has happened · he/she/itperfect active indicative 3rd person singular1×
Luke 1:36… Elisabet tas sungenias su kai autas sullabatē huion en gērae autau, kai houtos …Look, even Elizabeth your relative has conceived a son in her old age …
sullabosōr“help”happening now · youpresent middle or passive imperative 2nd person singular1×
Philippians 4:3nai erōtamō kai sin, gnēsior suzugor, sullabosōr autai, hotinais en te euangelie sunathlala …… ask you, my true yokefellow, to help these women who have contended at …
sullabara“capture”happened · the “to …” formaorist active infinitive3×
Matthew 26:55“capture”… lēston exerchava meta machairaiu kai xuleiu sullabara min? kata hēmeran en te hiere …… Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would an outlaw? Every day I sat teaching in the temple courts, and …
Mark 14:48“capture”… lēston exerchava meta machairaiu kai xuleiu sullabara min?… Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you …
Acts 12:3“arrest”… hoti arestem atō toi Ioudaioi prostitheta sullabara kai Petron ale de hēmerais teiu …And seeing that this pleased the Jews, Herod proceeded to seize Peter during the Feast of …
sullabera“help”happened · the “to …” formaorist middle infinitive1×
Luke 5:7… en te hetere ploie teu ercharantoin sullabera autoi; kai erchala, kai pimplēala amfotereim …… the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled …
sullabira“conceived”happened · the “to …” formaorist passive infinitive1×
Luke 2:21… kalirantem hupo tou angelou pro teu sullabira auton en ta koilia.… had given Him before He was conceived.
sullabarantas“conceived”happened · subjectaorist active participle nominative singular feminine1×
James 1:15eita tas epithumias sullabarantas tiktatō hamartan, tas de hamartas apotelirantas …Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and …
sullabarantois“seized”happened · subjectaorist active participle nominative plural masculine1×
Luke 22:54Sullabarantois de auton agala kai eisagala eis …Then they seized Jesus, led Him away, and took …
sullabarantoi“arrested”happened · to, foraorist active participle dative plural masculine1×
Acts 1:16… peri Ioudou tou generantou hodēgou toi sullabarantoi Iēsun,… became a guide for those who arrested Jesus.
sullaberantois“seized”happened · subjectaorist middle participle nominative plural masculine1×
Acts 26:21heneka houteiu min Ioudaiois sullaberantois en te hiere peirole diacheirizera.For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple courts and …
sullabiranton“seized”happened · objectaorist passive participle accusative singular masculine1×
Acts 23:27ton andron houton sullabiranton hupo toiu Ioudaioiu kai mellarōnton anairorō …This man was seized by the Jews, and they were …