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τετράδιον

tetrádion

G5069 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A group or squad consisting of four individuals, specifically used to denote a detachment of four Roman soldiers assigned to guard duties. The term denotes a discrete grouping of four, often in military contexts. In the New Testament, it is used to describe the Roman guard arrangement for prisoners.

Semantic Range

a group of four, a military guard of four soldiers, a Roman quaternion

Root / Etymology

From Greek τέσσαρες (tésseres), meaning 'four', with the neuter suffix -ιον (-ion) forming a noun indicating a thing or unit. The word is a diminutive or collective derived from the numeral for four.

Historical & Contextual Notes

τετράδιον is not widely attested in extant Greek literature, and its primary attestation is within New Testament and related Koine sources (e.g., Acts 12:4). There, it specifically refers to a guard unit comprised of four Roman soldiers, consistent with Roman military custom for organizing watches or shifts to ensure round-the-clock supervision. The term likely takes on this specialized sense in Hellenistic Greek under Roman influence, whereas in earlier Greek no standard military term for a specific four-person unit is attested. English translations often render it as 'quaternion', a Latin-derived term, or paraphrase it as 'squad of four soldiers', but these renditions may obscure the original's specificity as a Greek military borrowing referencing Roman organizational practice. There is no evidence in Greek usage for a broader or metaphorical application outside such specific military/administrative contexts in this period.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

neuter of a presumed derivative of (a tetrad; from τέσσαρες); a quaternion or squad (picket) of four Roman soldiers:--quaternion.

Root Family

τετράδιον (tetradion) — group of four, set of four, squad of four

Root τετράδ- group of four, set of four

Word Forms

1 distinct form

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
G5069-01 τετραδίοις tetradiois N DAT N PL quaternions to the squads of four to the squads of four 1

Occurrences in Scripture

1 occurrence

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
G5069-01 Acts 12:4 τετραδίοις tetradiois N DAT N PL quaternions to the squads of four to the squads of four
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