G4204 — πόρνη (pórnē)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G4204
Original: πόρνη
Transliteration: pórnē
Pronunciation: por'-nay
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: From G4205 πόρνος (pornos) — a fornicator; ultimately from πέρνημι (pernēmi, to sell)
Occurrences: 12 unique verses (12 tokens) in NT
Books: 6
First Occurrence: Matt 21:31 — "the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

Feminine of G4205; a strumpet; figuratively, an idolater:—harlot, whore.

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain: 088036 — Sexual Misbehavior
Broader Domain: 088 — Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior
Other words in subdomain: ἀρσενοκοίτης (G733), ἀσέλγεια (G766), ἐκπορνεύω (G1608), κοίτη (G2845), μαλακός (G3120), μοιχαλίς (G3428), μοιχάω (G3429), μοιχεία (G3430), μοιχεύω (G3431)

UBS Semantic Domains: - [088] Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
whore	4	33%
harlot	3	25%
harlots	3	25%
OF HARLOTS	1	8%
of an harlot	1	8%

All translations converge on a single meaning: a sexually immoral woman or prostitute. "Whore" appears only in Revelation; "harlot(s)" spans Gospel, Epistle, and Apocalyptic contexts.

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Revelation	5	1.2
James	1	0.9
1 Corinthians	2	0.5
Hebrews	1	0.3
Matthew	2	0.2
Luke	1	0.1

Revelation dominates with 5 of 12 occurrences (all in chs. 17–19 re: Babylon). Outside Revelation, usage clusters in passages about faith/repentance (Matt 21, Heb 11, Jas 2) and sexual ethics (1 Cor 6). Absent from the Pauline vice lists (which use the cognate noun πορνεία instead) and from the rest of the General Epistles.

Semantic Categories¶

1. The Repentant Harlot — Faith and the Kingdom¶

Harlots named as examples of unexpected faith and repentance, entering the kingdom ahead of the self-righteous. - Matt 21:31 — "the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you" - Matt 21:32 — "the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward"

2. Rahab — OT Harlot as Faith Exemplar¶

Rahab explicitly called πόρνη yet commended for faith and works, the only individual named as a harlot in the NT epistles. - Heb 11:31 — "By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace" - Jas 2:25 — "was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?"

3. Sexual Union — The Body and the Harlot¶

Paul's argument that physical union with a harlot makes one body with her, violating membership in Christ. - 1 Cor 6:15 — "shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid" - 1 Cor 6:16 — "he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh"

4. The Prodigal's Waste¶

The elder brother's accusation against the prodigal, associating harlots with reckless dissipation. - Luke 15:30 — "this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots"

5. Babylon the Great Whore (Revelation)¶

Figurative/symbolic usage — Babylon personified as a harlot who seduces nations and kings, then faces divine judgment. - Rev 17:1 — "Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters" - Rev 17:5 — "MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH" - Rev 17:15 — "The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues" - Rev 17:16 — "the ten horns…shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire" - Rev 19:2 — "he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἔρχομαι (erchomai)	G2064	3x (25%)	"come hither" (Rev 17:1) and entering the kingdom (Matt 21)
λέγω (legō)	G3004	3x (25%)	Introductory speech formulas around πόρνη pronouncements
μέγας (megas)	G3173	3x (25%)	"the great whore" (Rev 17:1, 19:2) — μεγάλη modifies πόρνη directly
ὁράω (horaō)	G3708	3x (25%)	Visionary seeing in Revelation; "when I saw her" (Rev 17:6)
ποιέω (poieō)	G4160	3x (25%)	"did the will of his father" (Matt 21:31); Rahab's works (Jas 2:25)
Ῥαάβ (Rhaab)	G4460	2x (17%)	Rahab named explicitly with πόρνη (Heb 11:31, Jas 2:25)
τελώνης (telōnēs)	G5057	2x (17%)	"publicans and harlots" — paired social outcasts (Matt 21:31–32)
σῶμα (sōma)	G4983	2x (17%)	Body theology — union with a harlot makes one body (1 Cor 6:15–16)
σάρξ (sarx)	G4561	2x (17%)	"one flesh" in sexual-union argument (1 Cor 6:16)
ὕδωρ (hydōr)	G5204	2x (17%)	"many waters" where the whore sits (Rev 17:1, 15)

Word Family / Cognates¶

G4202 πορνεία (porneia) — abstract noun: fornication, sexual immorality (25 vv)
G4203 πορνεύω (porneuō) — verb: to commit fornication (7 vv)
G4205 πόρνος (pornos) — masculine noun: fornicator, whoremonger (10 vv)
G1608 ἐκπορνεύω (ekporneuō) — compound verb: give oneself over entirely to fornication (1 v; Jude 7)

Synonyms¶

No distinct synonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G4204 beyond the cognate family already listed above.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for G4204.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
קְדֵשָׁה (qᵉdêshâh)	H6948	"harlot," "whore"	qᵉdêshâh = cult prostitute (religious/cultic); πόρνη = prostitute/harlot generally (secular or figurative)
זָנָה (zânâh)	H2181	"harlot"	zânâh = Hebrew verb "to play the harlot"; πόρνη = Greek noun for the person herself
μοιχαλίς (moichalis)	G3428	both denote sexually immoral women	moichalis = adulteress specifically (married woman's infidelity); πόρνη = harlot/prostitute (professional or habitual)

Domain Neighbors (Louw-Nida 088036 — Sexual Misbehavior)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Occurrences	Primary KJV	Key Difference from πόρνη
G733	ἀρσενοκοίτης	2	abusers of themselves with mankind	Male homosexual practice; πόρνη is female prostitution
G766	ἀσέλγεια	8	lasciviousness	Shameless licentiousness (attitude); πόρνη is the person
G1608	ἐκπορνεύω	1	giving themselves over to fornication	Intensive verb form (total abandonment); πόρνη is the noun for the practitioner
G3428	μοιχαλίς	5	adulteress	Adulteress (married); πόρνη = prostitute (not necessarily married)
G3430	μοιχεία	4	adulteries	Adultery as act (married); πόρνη = the harlot as person
G3431	μοιχεύω	13	commit adultery	Verb for adultery; πόρνη is a noun denoting the person
G3432	μοιχός	4	adulterers	Male adulterer; πόρνη = female harlot

Hebrew Source (LXX ← Hebrew)¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI Score	Notes
זָנָה (zânâh)	H2181	23	24.14	Primary bridge — root verb: to commit harlotry
קְדֵשָׁה (qᵉdêshâh)	H6948	4	15.03	Cult prostitute — LXX renders as πόρνη
רָחָב (Râchâb)	H7343	4	14.51	Rahab the proper name — consistently rendered with πόρνη
נָאַף (nâʼaph)	H5003	3	8.63	To commit adultery — occasional overlap
אִשָּׁה (ʼishshâh)	H802	10	7.84	"Woman" — generic, πόρνη used when context marks her as harlot

Primary Hebrew source is זָנָה (H2181, to play the harlot), with 23 co-occurrences — the strongest LXX bridge. The LXX translators consistently chose πόρνη for both literal prostitution (Gen 34:31, Josh 2:1) and figurative harlotry (Isa 1:21, Ezek 16:30).