κατακλείω
katakleíō
G2623 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To shut in or confine completely, with the nuance of enclosing securely or locking away; to imprison or detain, most often by sequestering in a secure location such as a prison, dungeon, or room. The primary sense concerns physical enclosure to prevent escape, though the term may contextually extend to situations of secure containment not necessarily related to penal incarceration.
Semantic Range
to shut in, to confine, to imprison, to incarcerate, to lock up, to enclose securely
Root / Etymology
From the prepositional prefix κατά (down, according to; here intensifying or emphasizing completeness) and the verb κλείω (to shut, close). Thus, κατακλείω means 'to shut down' or 'enclose completely.' The compound construction is typical of Koine Greek intensification.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In Hellenistic and Koine Greek texts, κατακλείω is used almost exclusively in contexts of physical sequestration, commonly of humans or animals, emphasizing a secure or thorough closure or locking away. In the Septuagint, it sometimes appears in rendering Hebrew terms related to confinement (e.g., סָגַר, sagar) and emphasizes complete enclosure versus simple closure. Its use in the New Testament is rare but always connotes physical imprisonment (e.g., Luke 3:20 of John being 'locked up' by Herod). The standard English translation 'shut up' corresponds to this meaning, but may underrepresent the emphasis on complete, secure enclosure or incarceration. The core difference with similar verbs like κλείω is the added intensity from κατά, marking a more decisive or total action of barring escape.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from κατά and κλείω; to shut down (in a dungeon), i.e. incarcerate:--shut up.
Root Family
κατακλείω (katakleiō) — to shut, to close, to enclose completely, to confine
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G2623-01 |
κατέκλεισα | katekleisa | V AOR ACT IND 1P SG |
shut up | I completely confined | I imprisoned | 1 |
G2623-02 |
κατέκλεισεν | katekleisen | V AOR ACT IND 3P SG |
shut up | he shut in completely | he shut in completely | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
2 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G2623-02 |
Luke 3:20 | κατέκλεισεν | katekleisen | V AOR ACT IND 3P SG |
shut up | he shut in completely | he shut in completely |
G2623-01 |
Acts 26:10 | κατέκλεισα | katekleisa | V AOR ACT IND 1P SG |
shut up | I completely confined | I imprisoned |