Word Study for G5214 (ὑμνέω)

hymnéō /hoom-neh'-o/ Ask about this word

Rootfrom ὕμνος

Meaningto hymn, i.e. sing a religious ode; by implication, to celebrate (God) in song

KJV usagesing a hymn (praise unto).

Word Study

In depth

A plain-language study of hymnéō — the range of meaning it carries, how Scripture actually uses it, and where it points. Written for readers who don’t know the original language.

Core Meaning & Semantic Range

The Greek word hymnéō, represented by G5214, means to hymn or sing a religious ode. It is used to describe the act of celebrating God in song. This specific term appears 4 times across 4 unique verses, indicating its use in precise and meaningful contexts within the scriptures.

Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis

In its biblical applications, G5214 marks moments of profound worship and solemnity. It describes the actions of Paul and Silas, who at midnight in prison "sang praises unto God" Acts 16:25. The gospels of Matthew and Mark use the word to describe the same event, noting that after the supper, "when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives" (Matthew 26:30, Mark 14:26). The term is also used in a declaration of praise within the congregation, as stated in Hebrews 2:12: "in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee."

Related Words & Concepts

Several related words provide a fuller context for the act of celebrating God:

G2316 theós (God): The object of the praise, defined as a deity, especially the supreme Divinity. The praise described by G5214 is directed unto God Acts 16:25.
G4336 proseúchomai (to pray): This term means to supplicate or worship and is used in conjunction with singing hymns, showing a combined act of devotion where Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises Acts 16:25.
G3004 légō (to say): Meaning to relate in words or put forth. This verb often introduces a declaration of praise, as seen in the introduction to a hymn of praise in the church Hebrews 2:12.
G518 apangéllō (to announce): This word for declaring or showing is paired with singing praise, linking the verbal announcement of God's name with the musical celebration of it Hebrews 2:12.

Theological Significance

The theological weight of G5214 is demonstrated in its specific contexts.

Worship in Hardship: The word is used to show that praising God is not contingent on circumstance, as Paul and Silas sang hymns while imprisoned, demonstrating faith in the midst of suffering Acts 16:25.
A Communal Act: In Matthew and Mark, the singing of a hymn is a shared act that concludes a significant gathering before a pivotal moment, highlighting its role in communal worship and preparation (Matthew 26:30, Mark 14:26).
Praise within the Church: The term is explicitly tied to worship within the assembly of believers, establishing the singing of praise as a central practice of the church Hebrews 2:12.

Summary

In summary, G5214 defines a specific and powerful form of worship: the singing of religious praise to God. Though used infrequently, its appearances are in theologically rich contexts, from a solemn conclusion to the last supper to an expression of unwavering faith in a prison cell. It solidifies the act of singing hymns as a fundamental expression of both personal and communal devotion.

How the KJV Renders It

Translation

Strong’s lists the renderings but not their weight. These are counted from the King James text of the tagged verses — the bar under each is how often the translators actually reached for it. Select one to filter the occurrences below.

Grammatical Forms

Morphology

In the Greek New Testament, this word appears as a verb across 4 occurrences, inflected in 3 grammatical forms — each row is one form, and the bar is how often it is that form.

Aorist Active Participle Nominative Plural Masculine 2×
Future Active Indicative 1st Singular 1×
Imperfect Active Indicative 3rd Plural 1×

Nominative: The subject of the verb.
Singular: One.
Plural: More than one.
Masculine: Masculine grammatical gender.
1st: First person — the speaker ("I"/"we").
3rd: Third person — the one spoken about ("he"/"they").
Imperfect: Ongoing or repeated action in the past — "was doing".
Future: Action yet to take place.
Aorist: Action viewed as a single whole — usually a simple past event.
Active: The subject performs the action.
Indicative: A plain statement of fact.
Participle: A verbal adjective — describes while carrying the verb's action.

Theographic Context

Context

The people, places, and span of history the verses containing this word touch on — drawn from the theographic tagging of Scripture. Select any name to isolate its verses in the occurrence list.

Biblical Distribution

Distribution

Appears in 4 verses across 4 of the 27 books. 4 books tie for most frequent (1 verse each); never once in the other 23.

Matthew

Mark

Acts

Hebrews

Every Occurrence

Concordance

Every verse where the word is tagged in the King James text. Filter by book, by the English word the translators chose, or search within the verses.

Sources. Definition and numbering: James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890). Morphology: STEPBible / Tyndale House (CC BY). Verse tagging: the King James text keyed to Strong’s numbers. Every count on this page is computed from the tagged corpus, not estimated.