UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament

Sense 1: to shake

Semantic entry: 16.7

Semantic domains: Non-Linear Movement

Definition: to cause something to move back and forth rapidly, often violently

Notes: In some languages there are quite distinct terms for shaking, depending upon the vigor of the motion and/or the objects which are shaken. Accordingly, one must exercise care in selecting terms which will accurately and adequately represent the nature of the shaking in the various contexts. For example, in RV HEB 12:26 · LV HEB 12:26 · Read together HEB 12:26 the shaking would presumably involve some kind of reverberation, but in RV REV 6:13 · LV REV 6:13 · Read together REV 6:13 the action of the wind suggests whipping something back and forth.|It is possible to interpret σαλεύω in RV MAT 24:29 · LV MAT 24:29 · Read together MAT 24:29 (αἱ δυνάμεις τῶν οὐρανῶν σαλευθήσονται ‘the hosts of heaven will be shaken’) as meaning literal shaking, but it may be used figuratively in the sense of deposing the hosts of heaven from their positions of power.

Sense 2: to stir up against, to start a riot, to cause an uproar

Semantic entry: 39.44

Semantic domains: Hostility, Strife

Subdomains: Riot

Definition: to cause people to riot against

Sense 3: to become unsettled, to be deeply distressed, to be upset

Semantic entry: 25.242

Semantic domains: Attitudes and Emotions

Subdomains: Worry, Anxiety, Distress, Peace

Definition: (a figurative extension of meaning of σαλεύω ‘to shake,’ 16.7: σαλεύω / 16.7: σείω) to become emotionally unsettled and distraught

Forms: σαλεύομαι