noun · masculine
topos
Strong’sG5117
a place
stem top-94 times in the New Testamentin 14 of 27 books7 of 10 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
Place, in the ordinary sense of a location, spot, region, or locality — a portion of space, whether a particular site, a district or region of a country, or the earth as a whole 1234. This is by far the most common use, covering everything from an open place or desert place to a particular locality such as "the place of a skull" or a rocky place along a coast 1. Within this sense it also came to be used specifically for a burial place, a grave or tomb 3.
It can also denote the particular spot or position that a person or thing occupies or is assigned to, such as one's own place or seat, the place held by someone in a group, the place of a passage within a book, or the place where a sword belongs (a sheath) 123.
Beyond the literal, the word is used figuratively for a person's condition, station, occasion, or opportunity — as in giving someone "place," meaning giving them room, occasion, or opportunity to act, including the idea of leaving room for someone else's anger rather than acting oneself 123.
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
τόπος, -ου, ὁ,
[in LXX chiefly for מָקֹום;]
SYN.: χώρα (extensive), region; χωρίον (enclosed), a piece of ground. τ. is "a portion of space viewed in reference to its occupancy, or as appropriated to a thing " (Grimm-Thayer, s.v.).
G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament, 1922 — public domain. References open in the reader.
Strong’s G5117 — the 1890 definition, and where the word comes from
Saidtop'-os
a spot (general in space, but limited by occupancy; whereas G5561 is a large but participle locality), i.e. location (as a position, home, tract, etc.); figuratively, condition, opportunity; specially, a scabbard
Fromapparently a primary word;
King Jamescoast, licence, place, X plain, quarter, + rock, room, where.
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
(feminine by attraction τόπον τὰν καλειμέναν Δαματρείαν Refs 2nd c.BC+, place, region, first in Refs 4th c.BC+, afterwards frequently in all writers; periphrastic, χθονὸς πᾶς τ., i.e. the whole earth, Refs 4th c.BC+; ἐν Ἑλλάδος τόποις in Greece,Refs; πρὸς ἑσπέρους τ. towards the West, Refs; πρόσθε Σαλαμῖνος τόπων before Salamis, Refs 5th c.BC+: so in Prose, district, ὁ τ. ὁ Ἑλληνικός Refs 5th c.BC+; ὁ τ. οὗτος, ἐν τούτοις τοῖς τ., Refs 5th c.BC+; ὅλος τ. a whole region, Refs 5th c.BC+; οἱ τῆς χώρας τ. the places of a country, Refs the geographical position, Refs 4th c.BC+; region, Refs 5th c.BC+; ὁ ἅγιοστ., of Jerusalem, LXX; the universe divided into three τόποι, Refs 4th c.BC+; οἱ κοινοὶ τ. public sites or buildings, Refs 2nd c.BC+; οἰκίαι καὶ τόποι houses and sites, Refs 2nd c.BC+; so ψιλοὶ τ. sites not built upon, Refs 3rd c.BC+
2 place, position, οὐ τὸν τρόπον, ἀλλὰ τὸν τ. μόνον μεταλλάξαι Refs 4th c.BC+; ὑπολιποῦ τ. leave a space (in a document), Refs 3rd c.BC+; τ. ἔχειν have a place, Refs 1st c.BC+; φίλου τ. ἔχειν hold the place of.., NT+2nd c.BC+; τ. ἔχειν also = have room (to grow), Refs 4th c.BC+; τόπῳ with genitive, in place of, instead of, Refs 2nd c.AD+; ἀνὰ τόπον on the spot, immediately, Refs 5th c.BC+; ἐπὶ τόπου Refs 3rd c.BC+; κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν τ. Refs 2nd c.AD+; παρὰ τόπον at a wrong place, Refs 1st c.BC+ by virtue of the place and the time, Refs
3 place or part of the body, Refs 5th c.BC+ in titles of works, e.g. περὶ τῶν πεπονθότων τόπων, περὶ συνθέσεως φαρμάκων τῶν κατὰ τόπου; especially ὁ τόπος, pudendum muliebre, Refs 4th c.BC+
4 place, passage in an author, κατὰ τόπους τινὰς τῆς ἱστορίας NT+2nd c.BC+; the word is probably interpolated in Refs 5th c.BC+
5 burial-place, NT; also in codices of Refs 5th c.BC+; later ὁ ἅγιος τ. is frequently of the grave of a martyr, or of a monastery associated with it, Refs 6th c.AD+
6 in Egypt, district, department, a entry-division of the νομός, ={τοπαρχία}, Refs 3rd c.BC+; οἱ ἔξω τ. uncertain meaning in Refs 3rd c.BC+
7 a room in a house, τόπον ἕνα ἄνευ ἐνοικίου Refs 2nd c.AD+; δύο τόπους ἤτοι συμπόσια Refs 4th c.BC+
8 position on the zodiac, Refs 2nd c.AD+; especially the twelve regionsRefs 2nd c.AD+
9 αὐτὸς ὁ θεὸς καλεῖται τόπος, τῷ περιέχειν τὰ ὅλα Refs 1st c.AD+
II topic, Refs 5th c.BC+
II.2 common-place or element in Rhetoric, ὁ τοῦ μᾶλλον καὶ ἧττον τ. Refs 4th c.BC+
II.2.b ={ὁμολογουμένου πράγματος αὔξησις}, Hermog Refs
II.2.c generally, sphere, ὁ πραγματικὸς τ. Refs 1st c.BC+
III metaphorically, opening, occasion, opportunity, ἐν τ. τινὶ ἀφανεῖ Refs 5th c.BC+; ὀργῇ διδόναι τ. NT+1st c.AD+; δότε τ. τῇ ὀργῇ leave room for the wrath (of God), i.e. let God punish, NT+2nd c.BC+; τ. διδόναι τινί with infinitive, give occasion to.., LXX
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
Every form this word takes in Biblang, with the Greek it corresponds to and how often the New Testament uses it.
| Job in the sentence case | one singular | more than one plural |
|---|---|---|
| subject nominative | topos16×τόπος | topois |
| object accusative | topon46×τόπον | topoin5×τόπους |
| direct address vocative | topor | topoir |
| of, belonging to genitive | topou7×τόπου | topoiu3×τόπων |
| to, for dative | topo15×τόπῳ | topoi2×τόποις |
Tinted cells are forms the New Testament never uses, so there is no Greek to show against them — but they are still correct Biblang, built from the slots below like any other.
Why these forms, and no others — the slots that make them
topo 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.
94 occurrences, every one of them listed
topos“place”subjectnominative singular16×
Matthew 14:15… tois mathētois legarōntois; Erēmos atō tos topos kai tas hōras ēdē parerchata; apoluasar …… and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late …
Matthew 27:33… topon legorōnton Golgothan, hem atō Kranieu Topos legorōntos,… place called Golgotha, which means The Place of the Skull,
Mark 6:11kai hos an topos mē decheteia vin mēde akoualeia vu, …… your feet when you leave that place, as a testimony against them.”
Mark 6:35… autou legale hoti Erēmos atō tos topos, kai ēdē hōras pollas;… and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late.
Mark 15:22… Golgothan topon, hem atō methermēneuorōntem Kranieu Topos.… place called Golgotha, which means The Place of the Skull.
Mark 16:6… egerita, ouk atō hōde; ide tos topos hopou tithala auton;… He is not here! See the place where they put Him.
Luke 2:7… en fatna, dioti ouk ate autoi topos en te katalume.… a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
Luke 14:22… Kurior, genatē hem epitassasa, kai ēti topos atō.… been done, and there is still room.’
John 4:20… legavō hoti en Hierosolumei atō tos topos hopou proskunarō datō.… but you Jews say that the place where one must worship is in …
John 19:20… toiu Ioudaioiu, hoti engus ate tos topos tau polau hopou staurita tos Iēsus; …… Jews read this sign, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near …
Acts 4:31kai dirantoiu autoiu saleuita tos topos en ho ale sunagorēntois, kai pimplēila …After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all …
Acts 7:33… hupodēmem toiu podoiu su, tos gar topos epi ho stēasē gēas hagias atō.… Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy …
Acts 7:49… oikodomavi mi, legatō kurios, ē tinos topos tau katapausiau mu?… the Lord, or where will My place of repose be?
Hebrews 8:7“occasion”… ate amemptas, ouk an deuterau zētote topos;… covenant had been without fault, no place would have been sought for a second.
Revelation 12:8kai ouk ischuata, oude topos heuriskita autoiu ēti en to ourano.… enough, and no longer was any place found in heaven for him and …
Revelation 20:11… tas gēas kai tos ouranos, kai topos ouk heuriskita autoi.… fled from His presence, and no place was found for them.
topon“place”objectaccusative singular46×
Matthew 14:13… anachōrata ekeithen en ploie eis erēmon topon kata idian; kai akouarantois tois ochlois …… by boat privately to a solitary place. But the crowds found out about …
Matthew 26:52… Apostrefasar tan machairan su eis ton topon autau, pantois gar tois labarantois machairan …“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “For all …
Matthew 27:33Kai ercharantois eis topon legorōnton Golgothan, hem atō Kranieu Topos …And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means The Place …
Matthew 28:6… gar kathōs legata; deute horavar ton topon hopou keiote;… as He said! Come, see the place where He lay.
Mark 1:35… anastēarantos exerchata kai aperchata eis erēmon topon kakei proseuchote.… and went out to a solitary place to pray.
Mark 6:31… vis autois kata idian eis erēmon topon kai anapauevar oligem. ale gar tois …… with Me privately to a solitary place, and let us rest for a …
Mark 6:32… aperchala en te ploie eis erēmon topon kata idian.… boat by themselves to a solitary place.
Mark 15:22kai feralō auton epi ton Golgothan topon, hem atō methermēneuorōntem Kranieu Topos.They brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha, which means The Place …
Luke 4:17… kai anaptussarantos tem bibliem heuriskata ton topon hou ate graforēntem;… Him. Unrolling it, He found the place where it was written:
Luke 4:37“place”… ekporeuote ēchos peri autou eis panton topon tau perichōrau.And the news about Jesus spread throughout the surrounding region.
Luke 4:42… de hēmerau exercharantos poreuita eis erēmon topon; kai tois ochlois epizētale auton, kai …… Jesus went out to a solitary place, and the crowds were looking for …
Luke 10:1… prosōpeu autou eis pantan polan kai topon hou mellate autos erchorō.… of Him to every town and place He was about to visit.
Luke 10:32“place”homoiōs de kai Leuitos kata ton topon ercharantos kai horarantos antiparerchata.So too, when a Levite came to that spot and saw him, he passed by on the other side.
Luke 14:9“place”… auton kalarantos legati si; Dōasar houto topon, kai tote archesi meta aischunau ton …Then the host who invited both of you will come and tell you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ And in humiliation, you will have to take the last place.
Luke 14:9… tote archesi meta aischunau ton eschaton topon katecharō.… will have to take the last place.
Luke 14:10… kaliseia poreuirantos anapiptasar eis ton eschaton topon, hina hotan erchateia tos kalarēntos sin …… go and sit in the last place, so that your host will come …
Luke 16:28… mē kai autois erchaleia eis ton topon houton tau basanau.… not also end up in this place of torment.’
Luke 19:5kai hōs erchata epi ton topon, anableparantos tos Iēsus legata pros auton; …When Jesus came to that place, He looked up and said, “Zacchaeus …
Luke 23:33kai hote erchala epi ton topon ton kalorōnton Kraniem, ekei staurala auton …When they came to the place called The Skull, they crucified Him …
John 10:40… palin peran tou Iordanou eis ton topon hopou ate Iōannos tem prōtem baptizarōntos, …… back across the Jordan to the place where John had first been baptizing …
John 11:48… Rōmaiois kai airali nu kai ton topon kai tem ethnem.… come and take away both our place and our nation.”
John 14:2… legama an vi hoti poreuomō hetoimazara topon vi;… am going there to prepare a place for you?
John 14:3kai ean poreuimeia kai hetoimazameia topon vi, palin erchomō kai paralabemi vin …… if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back …
John 18:2… kai Ioudos tos paradōarōntos auton ton topon, hoti pollakis sunagita Iēsus ekei meta …… Judas His betrayer also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there …
John 19:13… Iēsun, kai kathizata epi bēmeu eis topon legorōnton Lithostrōton, Hebraisti de Gabbatha.… on the judgment seat at a place called the Stone Pavement, which in …
John 19:17… stauron exerchata eis ton legorōnton Kranieu Topon, hem legotō Hebraisti Golgothas,… cross, He went out to The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew …
John 20:7“place”… keiorōntem alla chōris entulissorēntem eis henon topon;… rolled up, lying separate from …
Acts 1:25“place”labara ton topon tau diakoniau houtau kai apostolau, apo …to take up this ministry and apostleship, which Judas …
Acts 1:25… hau parabainata Ioudos poreuira eis ton topon ton idion.… abandoned to go to his rightful place.”
Acts 6:14… Iēsus tos Nazōraios houtos kataluati ton topon houton kai allaxati teim etheim heim …… Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses …
Acts 12:17… houteim. kai exercharantos poreuita eis heteron topon.… said, and he left for another place.
Acts 21:28… tem hierem kai koinatē ton hagion topon houton.… the temple and defiled this holy place.”
Acts 25:16… katēgororōntos kata prosōpem echatoiō toin katēgoroin topon tē apologiau labatoia peri teu enklēmeu.… over before he has had an opportunity to face his accusers and defend …
Acts 27:8molis tē paralegorōntois autan erchana eis topon tinon kalorōnton Kaloin Limēnoin ho engus …… with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town …
Acts 27:41“reef”peripiptarantois de eis topon dithalasson epikellala tan nauan, kai tas …But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck …
Acts 28:7“place”En de tei peri ton topon ekeinon huparchate chōrieim to prōto tau …… to Publius, the chief official of the island. He …
Romans 12:19mē heautoin ekdikarōntois, agapētoir, alla dōavar topon ta orga, grafotē gar; Mi ekdikēsias, …… not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is …
Romans 15:23“place”nuni de mēketi topon echarōntos en tei klimei houtei, epipothian …But now that there are no further opportunities for me in these regions, and since …
1 Corinthians 14:16“place”… ean eulogaseiō pneume, tos anaplērarōntos ton topon tou idiōtou pōs legati tem Amēn …Otherwise, if you speak a blessing in spirit, how can someone who is uninstructed say “Amen” to your …
Ephesians 4:27“opportunity”mēde dōavōr topon to diabolo.… do not give the devil a foothold.
Hebrews 11:8Pistia kalorōntos Abraam hupakouata exerchara eis topon hon mellate labarō eis klēronomian, kai …… when called to go to a place he would later receive as his …
Hebrews 12:17“place”… klēronomara tan eulogian apodokimazita, metanoiau gar topon ouk heuriskata, kaiper meta dakrueiu ekzētarantos …… wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected. He could find no ground for repentance, though he sought the blessing with tears.
Revelation 12:6… eis tan erēman, hopou echatō ekei topon hetoimazorēnton apo tou theou, hina ekei …… wilderness, where God had prepared a place for her to be nourished for …
Revelation 12:14… petoteiō eis tan erēman eis ton topon autau, hopou trefotō ekei kairon kai …… presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was …
Revelation 16:16kai sunagata autoin eis ton topon ton kalorōnton Hebraisti Harmagedōn.… they assembled the kings in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
Revelation 18:17“a place”… pantos kubernētos kai pantos tos epi topon plarōntos, kai nautois kai hosois tan …… been destroyed!” Every shipmaster, passenger, and sailor, and all who make their living from the sea, will …
topou“place”of, belonging togenitive singular7×
Matthew 14:35kai epignōskarantois auton tois androis tou topou ekeinou apostelala eis holan tan perichōran …And when the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word to …
Luke 6:17Kai katabainarantos meta autoiu stēata epi topou pedinou, kai ochlos pollos mathētoiu autou, …… them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of His disciples …
Luke 22:40generantos de epi tou topou legata autoi; Proseuchovōr mē eiserchara eis …When He came to the place, He told them, “Pray that you …
John 6:23… erchata ploiarieim ek Tiberiadau engus tou topou hopou esthiala ton arton eucharistarantou tou …… boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the …
Acts 6:13… ouk pauotō lalarōntos rēmeim kata tou topou tou hagiou kai tou nomou,… never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law.
Acts 21:28… laou kai tou nomou kai tou topou houtou pantoin pantachē didaskarōntos, ēti tē …… against our law and against this place. Furthermore, he has brought Greeks into …
Revelation 2:5… kinami tan luchnan su ek tou topou autau, ean mē metanoaseia.… and remove your lampstand from its place.
topo“place”to, fordative singular15×
Matthew 24:15… dia Daniēl tou profētou stēarēntem en topo hagio, tos anagnōskarōntos noatōr,… you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’ spoken of …
Luke 9:12… heuriskaleia episitismon, hoti hōde en erēmo topo anō.… For we are in a desolate place here.”
Luke 11:1… geneta en te arō auton en topo tino proseuchorōnton, hōs paueta, legata tinos …One day in a place where Jesus had just finished praying …
John 5:13“place”… Iēsus ekneuata ochlou arōntou en to topo.… was, for Jesus had slipped away while the crowd was there.
John 6:10… ate de chortos pollos en to topo. anapiptala oun tois androis ton arithmon …… was plenty of grass in that place, so the men sat down, about …
John 11:6“place”… tote men menata en ho ate topo duo hēmerain;… sick, He stayed where He was for two days,
John 11:30… kōman, alla ate ēti en to topo hopou hupantata auto tas Marthas.… village, but was still at the place where Martha had met Him.
John 19:41ate de en to topo hopou staurita kēpos, kai en to …… there was a garden in the place where Jesus was crucified, and in …
Acts 7:7… exercheli kai latreuali mi en to topo houto.… forth and worship Me in this place.’
Romans 9:26kai eti en to topo hou legita autoi; Ouk laos mu …… will happen that in the very place where it was said to them …
1 Corinthians 1:2“place”… kuriou nu Iēsu Christou en panto topo autoiu kai nu;… name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:
2 Corinthians 2:14“place”… autou fanerarōnto dia nu en panto topo;… Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.
1 Thessalonians 1:8… Makedonia kai Achaia, alla en panto topo tas pistias vu tas pros ton …… God has gone out to every place, so that we have no need …
1 Timothy 2:8“place”… oun proseuchorō toin androin en panto topo, epararōntoin hosiain cheirain chōris orgau kai …Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or dissension.
2 Peter 1:19… prosecharōntois hōs luchno fanarōnto en auchmēro topo, heōs hou hēmeras diaugazateia kai fōsforos …… a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the …
topoin“places”objectaccusative plural5×
Matthew 24:7… kai eli limois kai seismois kata topoin;… be famines and earthquakes in various places.
Mark 13:8… basileias epi basileian, eli seismois kata topoin, eli limois; archas ōdinaiu houteim.… There will be earthquakes in various places, as well as famines. These are …
Luke 21:11seismois tē megois kai kata topoin limois kai loimois eli, fobētreim tē …… earthquakes, famines, and pestilences in various places, along with fearful sights and great …
Acts 27:2… plarō eis toin kata tan Asian topoin anagina arōntou sun ni Aristarchou Makedonou …… to sail for ports along the coast of Asia, and we put out …
Acts 27:29“places”foborōntois tē mē pou kata trachuoin topoin ekpiptaneia ek prumnau riptarantois ankurain tessares …Fearing that we would run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed …
topoiu“places”of, belonging togenitive plural3×
Matthew 12:43… apo tou anthrōpou, dierchotō dia anudroiu topoiu zētarōntem anapausian, kai ouk heuriskatō.… a man, it passes through arid places seeking rest and does not find …
Luke 11:24… apo tou anthrōpou, dierchotō dia anudroiu topoiu zētarōntem anapausian, kai mē heuriskarōntem legatō; …… a man, it passes through arid places seeking rest and does not find …
Revelation 6:14… pantem orem kai nēsas ek toiu topoiu auteiu kinila.… and island was moved from its place.
topoi“places”to, fordative plural2×
Mark 1:45… polan eiserchara, alla exō epi erēmoi topoi ate; kai erchole pros auton pantothen.… but He stayed out in solitary places. Yet people came to Him from …
Acts 16:3“places”… toin Ioudaioin toin arōntoin en toi topoi ekeinoi, oidalelē gar hapantois hoti Hellēnos …… account of the Jews in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.