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G3089 - λύω (lyo)

Core Data

  • Strong's: G3089
  • Original: λύω
  • Transliteration: lyo
  • Pronunciation: loo
  • Part of Speech: Verb
  • Occurrences: 40 verses / 46 tokens across 10 NT books
  • First Occurrence: Matthew 5:19 - "shall break one of these least commandments"
  • Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition

-o; a primary verb; to "loosen" (literally or figuratively):—break (up),

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain

  • 018002 - Fasten, Stick To: domain includes the bind/loose contrast; neighbors δέω (G1210), δεσμεύω (G1195), κολλάω (G2853)
  • 037010 - Release, Set Free: neighbors ἀπολύτρωσις (G629), ἀπολύω (G630), ἄφεσις (G859), ἐλευθερία (G1657), ἐλεύθερος (G1658)
  • 020003 - Destroy: domain for "break/destroy" uses
  • 015014 - Disperse, Scatter: domain for breaking up/scattering contexts

Translation Distribution (KJV)

Translation Verses %
loose 4 10.0%
to loose 3 7.5%
Loose 2 5.0%
be broken 2 5.0%
be loosed 2 5.0%
loosed 2 5.0%
shall be dissolved 2 5.0%
other renderings 23 57.5%

Distribution by Book

Book Count Per 100 Verses
2 Peter 3 4.9
Revelation 6 1.5
1 John 1 1.0
Mark 5 0.7
Acts 7 0.7
John 6 0.7
Ephesians 1 0.6
Luke 6 0.5
Matthew 4 0.4
1 Corinthians 1 0.2

Semantic Categories

1. Untying / Loosing Physical Bonds or Objects

  • Mark 1:7; Luke 3:16 - unloosing a shoe latchet.
  • Mark 11:2-5; Luke 19:30-33 - loosing the colt.
  • John 11:44 - loose Lazarus and let him go.

2. Binding / Loosing Authority Formulae

  • Matthew 16:19 - "whatsoever thou shalt loose."
  • Matthew 18:18 - "whatsoever ye shall loose."

3. Release from Restraint or Captivity

  • Acts 22:30; 24:26 - Paul loosed/released.
  • Revelation 9:14-15 - angels bound at Euphrates are loosed.
  • Revelation 20:3, 7 - Satan later loosed from prison.

4. Breaking or Invalidating

  • Matthew 5:19 - breaking commandments.
  • John 5:18 - breaking the sabbath.
  • John 10:35 - scripture cannot be broken.

5. Destroying / Dissolving

  • John 2:19 - destroy this temple.
  • Ephesians 2:14 - broken down the middle wall.
  • 2 Peter 3:10-12 - elements/heavens dissolved.

Common Collocations

Word Strong's Co-occurrences Typical Pattern
δέω (bind) G1210 10 bind/loose contrast
πῶλος (colt) G4454 6 loosing the colt
κύριος (Lord) G2962 5 Lord's command/need contexts
ὑπόδημα (shoe) G5266 5 unloosing shoe/latchet
οὐρανός (heaven) G3772 5 eschatological dissolving/opening contexts

Word Family / Cognates

  • G3083 λύτρον (lytron) - ransom price.
  • G3084 λυτρόω (lytroo) - ransom/redeem.
  • G3085 λύτρωσις (lytrosis) - redemption.
  • G3086 λυτρωτής (lytrotes) - redeemer/deliverer.
  • G629 ἀπολύτρωσις (apolytrosis) - redemption/release.

Antonyms / Counterparts

  • G1210 δέω (deo) - bind.
  • G1195 δεσμεύω (desmeuo) - bind.

Easily Confused Words

Word Strong's Shared Translation Key Difference
ἀπολύω (apolyo) G630 loose/release compound often means release/send away/dismiss
ἀνίημι (aniemi) G447 loosed/forbear let go/relax; less broad than lyo
פָּתַח (pathach) H6605 loose/open dominant Hebrew source overlap; opening rather than general loosing
שָׁלַח (shalach) H7971 loose/send send/release range in Hebrew

Hebrew Source

Hebrew Source Strong's Co-occurrences PMI Score
פָּתַח (pathach) H6605 8 6.37 14.00
נָתַר (nathar) H5425 3 8.97 12.43
נַעַל (na`al) H5275 3 7.64 10.60
שָׁלַח (shalach) H7971 3 2.37 3.28

See Also

Generated from: gather_word_data.py, search_relationships.py, search_strongs.py, louw_nida.db Last updated: 2026-05-07