UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament

Sense 1: to seize, to catch, to take, to arrest

Semantic entry: 37.109

Semantic domains: Control, Rule

Subdomains: Seize, Take into Custody

Definition: to seize and to take along with

Sense 2: to conceive, to become pregnant

Semantic entry: 23.49

Semantic domains: Physiological Processes and States

Subdomains: Birth, Procreation

Notes: In many languages the process of becoming pregnant is expressed in different ways: ‘to begin to become large,’ ‘to receive sperm,’ ‘to let a child enter,’ or ‘to stop bleeding’ (a reference to the cessation of menstrual periods).|The phrases ἐν γαστρί (RV LUK 1:31 · LV LUK 1:31 · Read together LUK 1:31) and ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ (RV LUK 2:21 · LV LUK 2:21 · Read together LUK 2:21), meaning ‘in the womb,’ may be added to συλλαμβάνω without significant alteration of its meaning.

Sense 3: to join in helping

Semantic entry: 35.5

Semantic domains: Help, Care For

Subdomains: Help

Definition: to help by joining in an activity or effort

Notes: In a number of instances it is not necessary to specify the joint effort or activity, since this is supplied by the context itself as, for example, in RV LUK 5:7 · LV LUK 5:7 · Read together LUK 5:7 in which ‘coming to help’ indicates clearly the joint efforts. But in some languages it may be important to use a specific expression rather than a generic one. Accordingly, ‘to come and help them’ in RV LUK 5:7 · LV LUK 5:7 · Read together LUK 5:7 may be rendered as ‘to come and work with them.’

Forms: συλλαμβάνομαι