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ἀνήρ

anḗr

G435 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A male human being, an adult man distinguished from a boy or child. In various contexts, denotes a male individual with specific social roles (such as husband) or as contrasted with women or children. Can refer both to an individual male or, collectively, to men as opposed to women.

Semantic Range

adult male human being, man (in contrast to woman or child), husband (spousal role), male individual, fellow, sir (as a respectful address)

Root / Etymology

From root ἀνήρ- (ἀνδρ- in oblique cases), an inherited Greek term with possible Pre-Greek origin; no clear relationship to other Indo-European roots for 'man.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

In classical Greek, ἀνήρ was commonly used for an adult male, often distinguished from ἄνθρωπος, which could refer generically to any human being regardless of sex or age. ἀνήρ is also used in opposition to παῖς (boy, child) and γυνή (woman, wife). In the Hellenistic and New Testament periods, ἀνήρ frequently signifies 'husband' when context relates to marital status or the family (e.g., the spouse of a γυνή). In the Septuagint and New Testament, ἀνήρ may be used generically for 'man' (male person), or more specifically for a husband, or a significant male figure. Traditional English translations often render ἀνήρ as 'man' or 'husband,' but sometimes obscure contexts where it means specifically an adult male, or where it serves to contrast with children or women. The word may carry nuance of status, maturity, or masculine social role within a household or society.

Translation Consistency

primary "man" 90 occurrences

ἀνήρ primarily denotes an adult male (individual or collective) and is most naturally rendered in English as “man.” This term fits the typical usage across contexts (including contrast with woman/child and many instances where ‘husband’ is a role-based sense that can be handled by context or modifiers), is the most natural-sounding choice, and can be inflected to ‘men’ where needed for plural uses.

Alternatives (126 occurrences):
"adult men" (68x) "husband" (26x) "men" (20x) "husbands" (10x) "scaly skin disease" (1x) "o husband" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primary word (compare ἄνθρωπος); a man (properly as an individual male):--fellow, husband, man, sir.

Root Family

ἀνήρ (anēr) — adult male, man, husband

Root ἀνήρ-/ἀνδρ- adult male, man, husband

Word Forms

8 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G435-04 ἄνδρες andres N NOM M PL men adult men adult men 63
G435-08 ἀνὴρ aner N NOM M SG a man an adult man an adult man 52
G435-01 ἄνδρα andra N ACC M SG husband an adult man an adult man 31
G435-02 ἄνδρας andras N ACC M PL men adult men men 21
G435-05 ἀνδρὶ andri N DAT M SG husband to a man to a man 19
G435-07 ἀνδρὸς andros N GEN M SG man of a man of a man 16
G435-06 ἀνδρῶν andron N GEN M PL men of adult men of adult men 7
G435-03 ἀνδράσιν andrasin N DAT M PL husbands to men husbands 7

Occurrences in Scripture

216 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G435-01 Matthew 1:16 ἄνδρα andra N ACC M SG husband an adult man husband
G435-08 Matthew 1:19 ἀνὴρ aner N NOM M SG husband an adult man husband
G435-05 Matthew 7:24 ἀνδρὶ andri N DAT M SG a man to a man to a man
G435-05 Matthew 7:26 ἀνδρὶ andri N DAT M SG a man to a man to a man
G435-04 Matthew 12:41 ἄνδρες andres N NOM M PL men adult men adult men
G435-04 Matthew 14:21 ἄνδρες andres N NOM M PL men adult men adult men
G435-04 Matthew 14:35 ἄνδρες andres N NOM M PL men adult men adult men
G435-04 Matthew 15:38 ἄνδρες andres N NOM M PL men adult men adult men
G435-01 Mark 6:20 ἄνδρα andra N ACC M SG man an adult man an adult man
G435-04 Mark 6:44 ἄνδρες andres N NOM M PL men adult men adult men
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