Prostitute
πόρνηStrong’s G4204pornē
Appears in 12 verses of the New Testament
In short
Pornē is the Greek word usually translated “prostitute” and “prostitutes”. It appears in 12 verses of the New Testament.
“Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.”
Meaning
Usually translated “prostitute” and “prostitutes”. Open the dictionary entry below for the full range of meaning, with the verses it cites.
How it's translated
- prostitute 7
- prostitutes 4
- of a prostitute 1
Word-by-word English from the STEPBible tagged text.
Where it's used most
- Revelation 5
- Matthew 2
- 1 Corinthians 2
- Luke 1
- Hebrews 1
- James 1
6 books in all.
Related words
Explore in Scripture
- Matthew 21:32For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.
- Luke 15:30But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf.
- 1 Corinthians 6:15Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.
- 1 Corinthians 6:16What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh.
- Hebrews 11:31By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.
- James 2:25Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?
Greek dictionary
πόρνη pornē · prostitute
πόρνη, -ης, ἡ [in LXX chiefly for זָנָה ;] a prostitute, harlot: Mat.21:31-32, Luk.15:30, 1Co.6:15-16 Heb.11:31, Jas.2:25. Metaphorical (see Swete, Ap., 180 f.), of Babylon (i.e. Rome): Rev.17:1, 5 17:15-16 19:2.† (AS)
From STEPBible’s Greek lexicon (based on Abbott-Smith).
Webster's 1828 Dictionary
How the English word “prostitute” was understood when the King James Version was still the common Bible of English readers.
PROS'TITUTE, verb transitive
[Latin prostituo; pro and statuo, to set.]
- To offer freely to a lewd use, or to indiscriminate lewdness.“Do not prostitute thy daughter” Leviticus 19:29
- To give up to any vile or infamous purpose; to devote to any thing base; to sell to wickedness; as, to prostitute talents to the propagation of infidel principles, to prostitute the press to the publication of blasphemy.
- To offer or expose upon vile terms or to unworthy persons.
All definitions and other forms of “prostitute”
PROS'TITUTE, adjective
Openly devoted to lewdness; sold to wickedness or to infamous purposes.
PROS'TITUTE, noun
A female given to indiscriminate lewdness; a strumpet.
- A base hireling; a mercenary; one who offers himself to infamous employments for hire.
Noah Webster, An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828). Verse references are checked against the KJV. Read the full entry.
Verses are from the King James Version. Word meanings come from the original Greek, not from any one translation.