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πόλις

pólis

G4172 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A human settlement characterized by organized civic structure; primarily a (walled) city or urban center, but also extended to towns of varying size. In Greek usage, denotes a community with political, social, and often cultic organization, frequently distinguished from rural villages (κώμη). In the New Testament and Hellenistic sources, can refer either to a major city or to a regional urban center, depending on context.

Semantic Range

city, town, urban center, fortified place, civic community, polity

Root / Etymology

From the Greek root πόλις, possibly related to πολ- (as in πολύς, 'many'), indicating a gathering or multitude, or possibly related to πόλεμος ('war') due to the martial aspect of city defense; exact etymology uncertain.

Historical & Contextual Notes

The term πόλις in classical Greek signified not only the physical city but its social, legal, and political organization. A πόλις was defined by its autonomy (self-governing polity), citizenship structures, and public life. By the Hellenistic and Roman periods, the semantic emphasis broadened: πόλις could indicate large walled cities, administrative centers, colonies, or prominent towns, even without the full apparatus of classical city-state autonomy. In the Septuagint, πόλις frequently translates Hebrew עִיר ('city' or 'town'), including both major urban centers and smaller fortified towns. In New Testament usage, the term generally denotes a principal town or city within a region, sometimes in contrast to rural settlements (κώμη). English translations usually render πόλις as 'city', but this can mask distinctions of size or administrative status. The social and organizational connotations of πόλις are broader than the English 'city' suggests, encompassing notions of citizenship and communal identity. The concept was central in Greek thought (as in Aristotle's πολιτεία). The word does not automatically imply great size, but rather a place with civic identity and urban organization.

Translation Consistency

primary "city" 44 occurrences

'City' is the most frequent and natural English equivalent in the SILEX range for πόλις (139 of 163 occurrences). It captures the primary sense of an urban center, town, or civic community (including fortified/major cities) and can be inflected reasonably for plural and possessive forms in translation.

Alternatives (6 occurrences):
"cities" (6x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

probably from the same as πόλεμος, or perhaps from πολύς; a town (properly, with walls, of greater or less size):--city.

Root Family

πολ- (pleîstos) — many, much, great

Root πολ- city, settlement, organized community
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
G4118 πλεῖστος the most
G4177 πολίτης citizens
G4183 πολύς greatly

Word Forms

7 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G4172-06 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city 64
G4172-04 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city 36
G4172-07 πόλις polis N NOM F SG city city city 22
G4172-01 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city 21
G4172-02 πόλεις poleis N ACC F PL cities cities cities 12
G4172-03 πόλεων poleon N GEN F PL cities of cities of cities 6
G4172-05 πόλεσιν polesin N DAT F PL cities to cities cities 2

Occurrences in Scripture

163 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G4172-01 Luke 7:37 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-06 Luke 8:1 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city a city
G4172-06 Luke 8:4 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-04 Luke 8:27 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-06 Luke 8:34 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-06 Luke 8:39 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-04 Luke 9:5 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-06 Luke 9:10 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG a city a city a city
G4172-06 Luke 10:1 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-06 Luke 10:8 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-06 Luke 10:10 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-04 Luke 10:11 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-01 Luke 10:12 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-02 Luke 13:22 πόλεις poleis N ACC F PL city cities cities
G4172-04 Luke 14:21 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-01 Luke 18:2 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-01 Luke 18:3 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-03 Luke 19:17 πόλεων poleon N GEN F PL cities of cities of cities
G4172-03 Luke 19:19 πόλεων poleon N GEN F PL cities of cities of cities
G4172-06 Luke 19:41 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-06 Luke 22:10 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-01 Luke 23:19 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-04 Luke 23:51 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-01 Luke 24:49 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-04 John 1:44 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-06 John 4:5 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG a city a city a city
G4172-06 John 4:8 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-06 John 4:28 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-04 John 4:30 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-04 John 4:39 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-06 John 11:54 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city a city
G4172-04 John 19:20 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-01 Acts 4:27 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-03 Acts 5:16 πόλεων poleon N GEN F PL cities of cities of cities
G4172-04 Acts 7:58 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-06 Acts 8:5 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-01 Acts 8:8 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-01 Acts 8:9 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-02 Acts 8:40 πόλεις poleis N ACC F PL cities cities cities
G4172-06 Acts 9:6 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-01 Acts 10:9 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city to the city
G4172-01 Acts 11:5 πόλει polei N DAT F SG city to the city the city
G4172-06 Acts 12:10 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
G4172-07 Acts 13:44 πόλις polis N NOM F SG city city city
G4172-04 Acts 13:50 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-04 Acts 14:4 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-02 Acts 14:6 πόλεις poleis N ACC F PL cities cities cities
G4172-04 Acts 14:13 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-04 Acts 14:19 πόλεως poleos N GEN F SG city of a city city
G4172-06 Acts 14:20 πόλιν polin N ACC F SG city a city city
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