Strong's Lexicon
pós: How, in what way, by what means
Original Word:πῶς
Part of Speech:Adverb; Adverb, Interrogative
Transliteration:pós
Pronunciation:poce
Phonetic Spelling:(poce)
Definition:How, in what way, by what means
Meaning:how, in what manner, by what means.
Word Origin:Derived from the base of the Greek word ποῖος (poios), meaning "of what kind" or "which."
Corresponding Greek / Hebrew Entries:While there is no direct Hebrew equivalent for the Greek adverb "πῶς," similar expressions of inquiry in Hebrew might include words like "אֵיךְ" (eikh), meaning "how."
Usage:The Greek adverb "πῶς" (pós) is used to inquire about the manner or means by which something is done or occurs. It is often translated as "how" in English. This word is employed in questions to seek clarification or understanding of a situation, action, or state of being.
Cultural and Historical Background:In the context of the New Testament, "πῶς" is used in a variety of settings, from everyday conversations to theological discussions. The Greek language, with its rich vocabulary, allowed for nuanced expressions of inquiry, and "πῶς" served as a fundamental tool for seeking understanding. In the Greco-Roman world, questions about "how" things were done were essential for both philosophical inquiry and practical living.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origininterrog. adverb from the same as
pososDefinitionhow?
NASB Translationhow (101), what (1), why (1).
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 4459: πῶςπῶς (from the obsolete
ΠΟΣ, whence
ποῦ,
ποῖ, etc. (cf.
Curtius, § 631)), adverb (from
Homer down);
I. in interrogation;how? in what way? — in a direct question, followed by a. the indicative, it is the expressionα. of one seeking information and desiring to be taught:Luke 1:34;Luke 10:26;John 3:9;John 9:26;1 Corinthians 15:35 (cf.Winer's Grammar, 266 (250));πῶςοὖν,John 9:10Tdf. (butLWH bracketsοὖν),John 9:19;Romans 4:10.β. of one about to controvert another, and emphatically deny that the thing inquired about has happened or been done:Matthew 12:29;Mark 3:23;Luke 11:18;John 3:4, 12;John 5:44, 47;John 6:52;John 9:16;1 John 3:17;1 John 4:20;Romans 3:6;Romans 6:2;1 Corinthians 14:7, 9, 16;1 Timothy 3:5;Hebrews 2:3;καίπῶς,Mark 4:13;John 14:5 (hereL textTrWH omitκαί);πῶςοὖν,Matthew 12:26;Romans 10:14RG;πῶςδέ,Romans 10:14aRGL marginal reading, 14bRGT, 15RG (on this see in b. below). where something is asserted and an affirmative answer is expected,πῶςοὐχί is used:Romans 8:32;2 Corinthians 3:8.γ. of surprise, intimating that what has been done or is said could not have been done or said, or not rightly done or said — being equivalent tohow is it, or how has it come to pass, that etc.:Galatians 2:14GLTTrWH;Matthew 22:12;John 4:9;John 6:52;John 7:15;πῶςλέγεις,λέγουσι,κτλ.,Mark 12:35;Luke 20:41;John 8:38;καίπῶς,Luke 20:44;Acts 2:8;καίπῶςσύλέγεις,John 12:34;John 14:9 (hereLTWH omit;Tr bracketsκαί);πῶςοὖν,John 6:42 (hereTWHTr textπῶςνῦν);Matthew 22:43;πῶςοὐ,how is it that ... not, why not?Matthew 16:11;Mark 8:21RGL marginal reading; (RGT);Luke 12:56.b. the deliberative subjunctive (where the question is, how that can be done which ought to be done):πῶςπληρωθῶσιναἱγραφαί,how are the Scriptures (which ought to be fulfilled)to be fulfilled?Matthew 26:54;πῶςφύγητε,how shall ye (who wish to escape) escape etc.Matthew 23:33; add,πῶςοὖν,Romans 10:14LTTrWH;πῶςδέ,Romans 10:14aL textTTrWH; 14{b}LTrWH; 15LTTrWH (Sir. 49:11); cf. Fritzsche on Romans, vol. ii., 405f c. followed byἄν with the optative:πῶςγάρἄνδυναίμην;Acts 8:31 (on which seeἄν, III., p. 34b).
II. By a somewhat negligent use, occasionally met with, even in Attic writings, but more frequent in later authors,πῶς is found in indirect discourse, where regularlyὅπως ought to have stood; cf.Winers Grammar, § 57, 2 at the end; (Liddell and Scott, under the word, IV.).
a. with the indicative — present:Matthew 6:28;Mark 12:41;Luke 12:27;Acts 15:36;1 Corinthians 3:10;Ephesians 5:15;Colossians 4:6;1 Timothy 3:15;τόπῶς (on the article seeὁ, II. 10 a.); with the imperfectLuke 14:7; with the perfect,Revelation 3:3; with the aorist,Matthew 12:4;Mark 2:26 (hereTrWH bracketsπῶς);Luke 8:36;Acts 9:27, etc.; afterἀναγινώσκειν,Mark 12:26TTrWH; how it came to pass that, etc.John 9:15; with the future:μέριμνα,πῶςἀρέσει (because the direct question would beπῶςἀρέσω;),1 Corinthians 7:32-34 (butLTTrWHἀρέσῃ);ἐζήτουνπῶςαὐτόνἀπολέσουσιν, how they shall destroy him (so that they were in no uncertainty respecting his destruction, but were only deliberating about the way in which they will accomplish it),Mark 11:18RG (but the more correct reading here, according to the best manuscripts, including codex Siniaticus, isἀπολέσωσιν 'how they should destroy him' (cf.Winers Grammar, § 41 b. 4 b.;Buttmann, § 139, 61; see the next entry)).
b. with the subjunctive, of the aorist and in deliberation:Mark 11:18LTTrWH;Mark 14:1, 11 (RG);Matthew 10:19;Luke 12:11;τόπῶς,Luke 22:2, 4;Acts 4:21.
III. in exclamation,how:πῶςδύσκολόνἐστιν,Mark 10:24;πῶςπαραχρῆμα,Matthew 21:20;πῶςδυσκόλως,Mark 10:23;Luke 18:24; with a verb,how (greatly):πῶςσυνέχομαι,Luke 12:50;πῶςἐφίλειαὐτόν,John 11:36.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
at all, somehowAdverb from the base ofpou; an interrogative particle of manner; in what way? (sometimes the question is indirect, how?); also as exclamation, how much! -- how, after (by) what manner (means), that. (Occasionally unexpressed in English).
see GREEKpou
Forms and Transliterations
πῶς pos pôs pōs pō̂sLinks
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