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κατακλυσμός

kataklysmós

G2627 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A sweeping flood, deluge, or overwhelming inundation. Primarily refers to a destructive flood event, often used for the catastrophic flood in ancient narrative traditions. In broader contexts, can signify a great overflow, overwhelming waters, or an event characterized by complete submersion or destruction by water.

Semantic Range

a great flood, inundation, deluge, catastrophic water event, overwhelming destruction by water, specifically the Noahic flood

Root / Etymology

From the compound verb κατακλύζω (kataklyzō, 'to flood, inundate, overflow'), itself formed from κατά ('down, against, thoroughly') + κλύζω ('to wash over, billow, surge'). The noun form denotes the result of the action—an inundation or deluge.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In classical Greek, κατακλυσμός refers generically to a flood, often catastrophic in scale. In Hellenistic and Koine usage, especially in the Septuagint and New Testament, it is most commonly associated with the narrative of the flood in the days of Noah (e.g., Genesis 6–9 LXX; Matthew 24:38–39, 2 Peter 2:5), serving as a term for a world-destroying deluge. The term came to be linked with mythic and legendary floods in broader Greek tradition as well (e.g., the Deucalion myth). Standard English translations render it "flood" or sometimes "deluge," but the Greek emphasizes the overwhelming, all-encompassing destruction of the event beyond what "flood" may always imply in modern English. In LXX and NT texts, κατακλυσμός is used almost exclusively for the unique cataclysmic flood event, and is less frequently applied to generic flooding than the related term πλημμύρα (plēmmyra, 'flood, high water').

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from κατακλύζω; an inundation:--flood.

Root Family

κατακλυσμ- (kataklysmós) — to flood, to inundate, to overflow

Root κατακλυσμ- to flood, to inundate, to overflow

Word Forms

3 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G2627-02 κατακλυσμὸς kataklusmos N NOM M SG flood catastrophic deluge catastrophic deluge 2
G2627-01 κατακλυσμὸν kataklusmon N ACC M SG flood a sweeping deluge a deluge 1
G2627-03 κατακλυσμοῦ kataklusmou N GEN M SG flood of the deluge deluge 1

Occurrences in Scripture

4 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G2627-03 Matthew 24:38 κατακλυσμοῦ kataklusmou N GEN M SG flood of the deluge deluge
G2627-02 Matthew 24:39 κατακλυσμὸς kataklusmos N NOM M SG flood catastrophic deluge catastrophic deluge
G2627-02 Luke 17:27 κατακλυσμὸς kataklusmos N NOM M SG flood catastrophic deluge flood
G2627-01 2 Peter 2:5 κατακλυσμὸν kataklusmon N ACC M SG flood a sweeping deluge a deluge
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