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ἁγνότης

hagnótēs

G54 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

State or quality of being pure or clean, commonly in a moral or ritual sense; often denotes inner moral purity or sincerity, particularly of motive or conduct. In Hellenistic and Koine usage, refers primarily to uprightness or cleanness of character, not just external ritual purity, but also inward ethical and spiritual cleanness.

Semantic Range

moral purity, inward cleanness, sincerity of motive, uprightness of conduct, freedom from corruption or defilement, ritual purity (rare, mainly classical)

Root / Etymology

From ἁγνός (hagnos), meaning pure, holy, chaste, often describing what is ritually or morally uncontaminated, plus the abstract noun suffix -της, indicating 'the state of being.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

ἁγνότης appears only rarely in extant Greek literature, but reflects a standard pattern of forming abstract nouns from adjectives. In classical Greek, ἁγνός primarily denoted ritual purity, especially in relation to cultic practices or offerings. By the Hellenistic and New Testament periods, the term expands to include ethical purity and sincerity of intention or action. In the New Testament, ἁγνότης is used to emphasize the internal, moral dimension of purity as distinct from merely ritual or external observance (cf. 2 Corinthians 6:6, 11:2). English translations often render it as 'pureness' or 'purity', but these do not fully capture the emphasis on both inward moral integrity and outward integrity of conduct. Related to, but more specifically inward and ethical than, ἁγιωσύνη (holiness).

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from ἁγνός; cleanness (the state), i.e. (figuratively) blamelessness:--pureness.

Root Family

ἁγνότης (hagnótēs) — purity, cleanness, chastity, moral uprightness, inward sincerity

Root ἁγν- to be pure, to be clean, to be chaste

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G54-02 ἁγνότητος agnotetos N GEN F SG purity of moral purity purity 1
G54-01 ἁγνότητι agnoteti N DAT F SG purity in purity purity 1

Occurrences in Scripture

2 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G54-01 2 Corinthians 6:6 ἁγνότητι agnoteti N DAT F SG purity in purity purity
G54-02 2 Corinthians 11:3 ἁγνότητος agnotetos N GEN F SG purity of moral purity purity
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