G2662 — καταπατέω (katapatéō)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G2662
Original: καταπατέω
Transliteration: katapatéō
Pronunciation: kat-ap-at-eh'-o
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: from κατά (G2596, "down") + πατέω (G3961, "to tread, trample")
Occurrences: 5 in NT (5 unique verses, 3 books)
First Occurrence: Mat 5:13 — "it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From κατά (down) and πατέω (to tread); to trample down; figuratively, to reject with disdain. The κατά- prefix intensifies the simple verb πατέω, adding downward force and the connotation of thorough, contemptuous trampling — not incidental stepping, but deliberate crushing underfoot. The figurative extension to contempt and scorn (reject with disdain) is already native to the word; Hebrews 10:29 exploits this dual sense.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 019.005: Press — exert force downward
Other words in subdomain: ἀποθλίβω (G0598), ἐπίκειμαι (G1945), ἐπιπίπτω (G1968), θλίβω (G2346), λικμάω (G3039), πατέω (G3961), πιέζω (G4085), πνίγω (G4155), συμπνίγω (G4846)
Domain 088.025: Despise, Scorn, Contempt — moral/ethical rejection
Other words in subdomain: ἐξουθενέω (G1848), κατακαυχάομαι (G2620), καταφρονέω (G2706), καταφρονητής (G2707), ὀλιγωρέω (G3643)

Katapatéō is unusual in straddling a physical-impact domain (019 Press) and a moral-attitude domain (088 Despise). This dual classification is the key to Heb 10:29 — the literal act of trampling and the figurative act of treating the Son of God with contempt are the same word.

Louw-Nida Domain Neighbors (088.025 — Despise, Scorn, Contempt)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total vv	Primary KJV Translation(s)	Key Difference
G1848	ἐξουθενέω (exoutheneō)	5	set at nought, despise	"count as nothing" — nullify value
G2620	κατακαυχάομαι (katakauchaomai)	3	boast against, rejoice against	vaunt oneself over another — verbal triumph
G2706	καταφρονέω (kataphroneō)	7	despise	mental attitude — "think down on"
G2707	καταφρονητής (kataphronētēs)	1	despisers	noun form — a despiser
G3643	ὀλιγωρέω (oligōreō)	2	despise	"make little of" — Heb 12:5 chastening

Katapatéō is the most physical/violent of the scorn verbs — it expresses contempt through bodily action rather than mental attitude or verbal boast.

UBS Semantic Domains¶

[019] Physical Impact
[088] Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior

UBS preserves the same dual profile visible in Louw-Nida: physical trampling and contemptuous moral rejection.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
trodden under foot	1	20%
hath trodden under foot	1	20%
to be trodden under foot	1	20%
trample	1	20%
trode (trode one upon another)	1	20%
it was trodden down	1	20%

Every KJV rendering is a variant of "tread / trample / trodden (under foot)." The translators consistently signal the downward, crushing sense with "under foot" or "down" modifiers.

Morphological Forms¶

Reference	Greek Form	Parse
Mat 5:13	καταπατεῖσθαι	Pres Pass Inf — "to be trampled"
Mat 7:6	καταπατήσουσιν	Fut Act Ind 3 Pl — "they will trample"
Luk 8:5	κατεπατήθη	Aor Pass Ind 3 Sg — "it was trampled"
Luk 12:1	καταπατεῖν	Pres Act Inf — "to trample"
Heb 10:29	καταπατήσας	Aor Act Ptcp Nom Sg Masc — "having trampled"

Notable pattern: 3 of 5 forms are passive/middle or passive-infinitive (salt, seed, holy thing are trampled upon); the 2 active uses (Mat 7:6 swine, Heb 10:29 apostate) have the trampler as subject.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Hebrews	1	0.3
Matthew	2	0.2
Luke	2	0.2

Confined to Synoptic Gospels and Hebrews. Absent from John, Paul, General Epistles (except Hebrews), and Revelation. Where Revelation uses πατέω (G3961) for divine treading (winepress), the Gospels/Hebrews use katapatéō for human rejection/trampling.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Loss of Function — Trodden as Worthless¶

The trampled object has forfeited its purpose; being walked on signifies its uselessness.

Mat 5:13 — "if the salt have lost his savour... it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men"
Luk 8:5 — "some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it"

2. Profaning the Sacred — Trampling the Holy¶

Swine and dogs, ritually unclean, crush what is holy; the act is at once physical desecration and moral outrage.

Mat 7:6 — "Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet"

3. Crowding / Physical Crushing (Literal Crowd Pressure)¶

Pure physical sense — a mob so thick people step on each other.

Luk 12:1 — "an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another"

4. Contempt for the Holy — Apostate Rejection¶

The strongest figurative use: deliberate, high-handed rejection of Christ is framed as bodily trampling on the Son of God.

Heb 10:29 — "who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant... an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
βάλλω (ballō)	G906	2x (40%)	"cast out and trodden" — rejection paired with trampling (Mat 5:13, Luk 8:5)
ἅλας (halas)	G217	1x	salt trampled when savorless (Mat 5:13)
γῆ (gē)	G1093	1x	"salt of the earth" — object of trampling (Mat 5:13)
ἅγιος (hagios)	G40	1x	"that which is holy" trampled (Mat 7:6)
διαθήκη (diathēkē)	G1242	1x	covenant blood counted unholy alongside trampling (Heb 10:29)
αἷμα (haima)	G129	1x	blood of the covenant (Heb 10:29)
ἁγιάζω (hagiazō)	G37	1x	"wherewith he was sanctified" (Heb 10:29)
ἐνυβρίζω (enybrizō)	G1796	1x	"done despite" — paralleled with trampling (Heb 10:29)
ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos)	G444	1x	"trodden under foot of men" (Mat 5:13)
ἐκβάλλω (ekballō, via G906)	—	—	"cast out" preceding trampling (Mat 5:13)

Typical co-text: something sacred or valuable (salt, holy thing, seed, Son of God, covenant blood) becomes the object of deliberate trampling after being rejected/cast out.

Word Family / Cognates¶

G3961 πατέω (pateō) — simple verb "to tread, trample"; 5 NT occurrences (Luke, Revelation); used for authority over enemies (Luk 10:19) and the winepress of God's wrath (Rev 14:20, 19:15)
G2596 κατά (kata) — preposition/prefix "down, against"; intensifies pateō → downward, thorough trampling
G1726 ἐναντίον, G1715 ἔμπροσθεν — spatial positioning often accompanying the trample scene

Synonyms¶

No direct curated synonyms returned by search_relationships.py.

Antonyms¶

No direct curated antonyms returned by search_relationships.py.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Sense	Key Difference
πατέω (pateō)	G3961	both = tread/trample	pateō = simple treading; can be benign (walking path) or powerful (winepress); katapatéō = always intensive/hostile/contemptuous
καταφρονέω (kataphroneō)	G2706	both translated "despise" in figurative sense	kataphroneō = mental disdain ("think down on"); katapatéō = physical/bodily expression of contempt
ἐξουθενέω (exoutheneō)	G1848	both = scornful rejection	exoutheneō = "count as nothing" (Luk 23:11 Herod mocking); katapatéō = crush underfoot
συμπατέω (sympateō) / καταπιέζω	—	trample in crowd	katapatéō in Luk 12:1 covers the crowd-crush sense uniquely

Hebrew Source (LXX → NT)¶

Ranked by PMI-weighted co-occurrence (how often each Hebrew word maps to καταπατέω in LXX):

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Score	Notes
רָמַס (ramas)	H7429	7	8.03	16.69	Primary bridge. "to tread upon (as a potter)"; Isa 1:12, 16:4, 26:6, 28:3, 41:25, 63:3; Eze 26:11, 34:18; Dan 8:7, 8:10 — this is the verb used for the little horn "casting down" the host and stamping on them
שָׁאַף (shaʼaph)	H7602	3	7.25	10.05	"pant after, swallow up" — poetic overlap in oppression passages
רֶגֶל (regel)	H7272	5	4.02	7.21	"foot" — noun, co-occurs in "under foot" expressions
דָּרַךְ (darak)	H1869	3	5.17	7.17	"to tread, bend (bow)" — overlapping semantic domain
בּוּס (bus)	H947	—	—	—	"tread down, trample, loathe" — secondary Hebrew source for katapatéō in LXX (Isa 14:19, 63:18; Jer 12:10; Zec 10:5); user-noted bridge
מִרְמָס (mirmas)	H4823	—	—	—	"trampling, trodden place" — noun from ramas root; Isa 10:6, 28:18; Eze 34:19; Dan 8:13 u-mirmas "and the trampling" (the word behind "trodden under foot" in the 2300-days question)

Dan 8:13 bridge note: The noun mirmas (H4823) in Dan 8:13 derives from ramas (H7429), and ramas is the dominant Hebrew source (co-occ 7, PMI 8.03) for katapatéō in LXX. The LXX and Theodotion renderings of Dan 8:10–13 use forms of καταπατέω / συμπατέω for the little horn's trampling action. G2662 is therefore the natural NT lexical heir of the Dan 8 trampling vocabulary.