ἄφνω

aphno

suddenly

adverb from ἀφανής (contraction); unawares, i.e. unexpectedly:--suddenly.

G869

Acts 2:2 · Word #3

Lexicon G869

Lemmaἄφνω
Transliterationáphnō
Strong'sG869
In-contextsuddenly
Literalsuddenly

Morphology ADV All morphology codes

Part of Speech ADV — Adverb — Modifies a verb, adjective, or other adverb

Lexical Info

Lemmaἄφνω
Strong'sG869

SIBI-P1 G869-01

unseen-ly

Rootἄφνω (aphnō)
Core Meaningssuddenly, unexpectedly, unawares, from unseen-ness
Semantic Rangesuddenly, unexpectedly, without warning, unawares, abruptly
Conceptual SignificanceIn biblical narrative, ἄφνω often marks moments of abrupt divine intervention or unexpected change, highlighting the hiddenness of events until they break into visibility, underscoring themes of revelation and sudden judgment or deliverance.
Morphological NotesGr,D = adverb; indeclinable; functions adverbially to modify a verb, expressing manner or circumstance.
Rendering RationaleThe adverb ἄφνω derives from ἀφανής (“unseen, not manifest”), conveying the sense of something occurring out of unseen-ness. Rendering it as “unseen-ly” preserves the root idea of hiddenness while reflecting its adverbial function (Gr,D), modifying a verb to describe the manner of action.

AI-generated (openai/gpt-5.2-chat-latest)

Word Usage (3 occurrences of G869)

Location Form Transliteration Meaning
Acts 2:2 ἄφνω aphno suddenly
Acts 16:26 ἄφνω aphno suddenly
Acts 28:6 ἄφνω aphno suddenly