verb
tapeinamō
Strong’sG5013
I humble, humiliate
stem tapein-14 times in the New Testamentin 6 of 27 books7 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
ταπεινόω primarily means to make low, lower in a literal, physical sense — used of leveling a mountain or high place 13.
More often it is used metaphorically, meaning to humble, abase — bringing a person low in status or condition, or humbling oneself in heart 1234. This can be done to another person or, reflexively, to oneself, and covers both being humbled by circumstance and deliberately humbling oneself 13.
In the Greek Old Testament the same verb is also used in the specific sense of violating a woman 3.
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
ταπεινόω, -ῶ
(< ταπεινός), [in LXX chiefly for עָנָה, also for שָׁפֵל, כָּנַע, etc.;]
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G5013 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidtap-i-no'-o
to depress; figuratively, to humiliate (in condition or heart)
Fromfrom G5011;
King Jamesabase, bring low, humble (self).
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
lower, in point of height, reduce, σπλῆνα (swollen spleen) Refs 1st c.AD+:—passive, πᾶν ὄρος ταπεινωθήσεται LXX+5th c.BC+; of a plant, decrease in size, Refs 4th c.BC+; of rivers, Refs 1st c.BC+; Astrology texts, of a planet, suffer dejection, Refs 2nd c.AD+
II metaphorically, lessen, τὸν φθόνον Refs 5th c.BC+; disparage, minimize, Refs 2nd c.BC+:—passive, to be lowered or lessened, Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2 humble, abase, Refs 5th c.BC+:—passive, ταπεινωθεὶς ἕπεται Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2.b violate a woman, LXX
II.3 in moral sense, make lowly, humble, ἑαυτόν NT+1st c.BC+:—passive, humble oneself, τὴν θεὸν ἐξιλάσαντο τῷ ταπεινοῦσθαι σφόδρα NT+4th c.BC+
II.4 especially of fasting or abstinence, θεοῦ ᾧ πᾶσα ψυχὴ ἐν τῇ σήμερον ἡμέρᾳ (i.e. on a fast-day) ταπεινοῦται μεθ᾽ ἱκετείας Refs 2nd c.AD+; ἐὰν ψυχὴν τεταπεινωμένην ἐμπλήσῃς feed the hungry, LXX; οἶδα ταπεινοῦσθαι, opposed to περισσεύειν, NT
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| tapeinatiταπεινώσει | will happen · he/she/itfuture active indicative 3rd person singular | humbles | 2× |
| tapeinitiταπεινωθήσεται | will happen · he/she/itfuture passive indicative 3rd person singular | humbled | 4× |
| tapeinataἐταπείνωσεν | happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular | humbled | 1× |
| tapeinateiaταπεινώσῃ | happened · he/she/itaorist active subjunctive 3rd person singular | humble | 1× |
| tapeinivarταπεινώθητε | happened · yeaorist passive imperative 2nd person plural | humble | 2× |
| tapeinorōταπεινοῦσθαι | happening now · the “to …” formpresent middle or passive infinitive | make do with little | 1× |
| tapeinarōntosταπεινῶν | happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular masculine | humbles | 3× |
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 172, by mood, including the ones the New Testament never uses
Statements — indicative mood, 7 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 | tapeinamō | tapeiname | tapeinami | tapeinama | tapeinamē | tapeinamelē |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinasō | tapeinase | tapeinasi | tapeinasa | tapeinasē | tapeinaselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinatō | tapeinate | tapeinati2×ταπεινώσει | tapeinata1×ἐταπείνωσεν | tapeinatē | tapeinatelē |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinanō | tapeinane | tapeinani | tapeinana | tapeinanē | tapeinanelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinavō | tapeinave | tapeinavi | tapeinava | tapeinavē | tapeinavelē |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinalō | tapeinale | tapeinali | tapeinala | tapeinalē | tapeinalelē |
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 | tapeinomō | tapeinome | tapeinomē | tapeinomelē |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinosō | tapeinose | tapeinosē | tapeinoselē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinotō | tapeinote | tapeinotē | tapeinotelē |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinonō | tapeinone | tapeinonē | tapeinonelē |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinovō | tapeinove | tapeinovē | tapeinovelē |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinolō | tapeinole | tapeinolē | tapeinolelē |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | will happen future | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinimi | tapeinima |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinisi | tapeinisa |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeiniti4×ταπεινωθήσεται | tapeinita |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinini | tapeinina |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinivi | tapeiniva |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinili | tapeinila |
May, might — subjunctive mood, 1 occurrence
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinameiō | tapeinameia | tapeinameiē |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinaseiō | tapeinaseia | tapeinaseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinateiō | tapeinateia1×ταπεινώσῃ | tapeinateiē |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinaneiō | tapeinaneia | tapeinaneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinaveiō | tapeinaveia | tapeinaveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinaleiō | tapeinaleia | tapeinaleiē |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinomeiō | tapeinomeiē |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinoseiō | tapeinoseiē |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinoteiō | tapeinoteiē |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinoneiō | tapeinoneiē |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinoveiō | tapeinoveiē |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinoleiō | tapeinoleiē |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinimeia |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeiniseia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeiniteia |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinineia |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeiniveia |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinileia |
Commands — imperative mood, 2 occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinasōr | tapeinasar | tapeinasēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinatōr | tapeinatar | tapeinatēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinavōr | tapeinavar | tapeinavēr |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinalōr | tapeinalar | tapeinalēr |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinosōr | tapeinosēr |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinotōr | tapeinotēr |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinovōr | tapeinovēr |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinolōr | tapeinolēr |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinisar |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinitar |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinivar2×ταπεινώθητε |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinilar |
Wishes — optative mood, no occurrences
the subject acts active voice
| Who person | happening now present | happened aorist |
|---|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinamoiō | tapeinamoia |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinasoiō | tapeinasoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinatoiō | tapeinatoia |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinanoiō | tapeinanoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinavoiō | tapeinavoia |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinaloiō | tapeinaloia |
acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice
| Who person | happening now present |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinomoiō |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinosoiō |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinotoiō |
| we 1st person plural | tapeinonoiō |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinovoiō |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeinoloiō |
acted on passive voice
| Who person | happened aorist |
|---|---|
| I 1st person singular | tapeinimoia |
| you 2nd person singular | tapeinisoia |
| he/she/it 3rd person singular | tapeinitoia |
| we 1st person plural | tapeininoia |
| ye 2nd person plural | tapeinivoia |
| they 3rd person plural | tapeiniloia |
The “to …” form — infinitive, 1 occurrence
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | tapeinarō | tapeinari | tapeinara | tapeinarē |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | tapeinorō1×ταπεινοῦσθαι | tapeinorē | ||
| acted on passive voice | tapeiniri | tapeinira |
Used as an adjective — participle, 3 occurrences
| Who is acting voice | happening now present | will happen future | happened aorist | has happened perfect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the subject acts active voice | tapeinarōntos3×ταπεινῶν | tapeinarintos | tapeinarantos | tapeinarēntos |
| acts on itself, or is acted on middle or passive voice | tapeinorōntos | tapeinorēntos | ||
| acted on passive voice | tapeinirintos | tapeinirantos |
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
tapein 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
Words built on the same stem
Other words sharing the exact same stem — not merely related in meaning.
Where it appears
Every verse the word appears in, filed under the form it takes there.
14 occurrences, every one of them listed
tapeinati“humbles”will happen · he/she/itfuture active indicative 3rd person singular2×
Matthew 18:4hotinos oun tapeinati heauton hōs tem paidiem houtem, houtos …Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is …
Matthew 23:12… de hupsati heauton tapeiniti, kai hotinos tapeinati heauton hupsiti.… himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
tapeiniti“humbled”will happen · he/she/itfuture passive indicative 3rd person singular4×
Matthew 23:12hotinos de hupsati heauton tapeiniti, kai hotinos tapeinati heauton hupsiti.For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be …
Luke 3:5… plēriti kai pantem orem kai bounos tapeiniti, kai eti teim skolieim eis euthuan …… in, and every mountain and hill made low. The crooked ways shall be made …
Luke 14:11hoti pantos tos hupsarōntos heauton tapeiniti kai tos tapeinarōntos heauton hupsiti.… everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself …
Luke 18:14… ekeinon; hoti pantos tos hupsarōntos heauton tapeiniti, tos de tapeinarōntos heauton hupsiti.… everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself …
tapeinata“humbled”happened · he/she/itaorist active indicative 3rd person singular1×
Philippians 2:8tapeinata heauton generantos hupēkoos mechris thanatou, thanatou …… in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death …
tapeinateia“humble”happened · he/she/itaorist active subjunctive 3rd person singular1×
2 Corinthians 12:21mē palin ercharantou mu tapeinateia min tos theos mu pros vin, …… I come again, my God will humble me before you, and I will …
tapeinivar“humble”happened · yeaorist passive imperative 2nd person plural2×
James 4:10tapeinivar enōpion kuriou, kai hupsati vin.Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He …
1 Peter 5:6Tapeinivar oun hupo tan krataian cheiran tou …Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand …
tapeinorō“make do with little”happening now · the “to …” formpresent middle or passive infinitive1×
Philippians 4:12“make do with little”oidamē kai tapeinorō, oidamē kai perisseuarō; en pante kai …I know how to live humbly, and I know how to abound. In any and every situation …
tapeinarōntos“humbles”happening now · subjectpresent active participle nominative singular masculine3×
Luke 14:11… tos hupsarōntos heauton tapeiniti kai tos tapeinarōntos heauton hupsiti.… be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 18:14… tos hupsarōntos heauton tapeiniti, tos de tapeinarōntos heauton hupsiti.… be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
2 Corinthians 11:7“humbling”Ē hamartan poiama miauton tapeinarōntos hina vis hupsiveia, hoti dōreōs tem …… it a sin for me to humble myself in order to exalt you, because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge?