Lexical Definition

‎ψυχή‎ psychḗ (psoo-khay') soul ^G:N-F
from ‎ψύχω‎

heart (+ -ily), life, mind, soul, + us, + you.

• breath, i.e. (by implication) spirit, abstractly or concretely (the animal sentient principle only
• thus distinguished on the one hand from ‎πνεῦμα‎, which is the rational and immortal soul
• and on the other from ‎ζωή‎, which is mere vitality, even of plants: these terms thus exactly correspond respectively to the Hebrew ‎נֶפֶשׁ‎, ‎רוּחַ‎ and ‎חַי‎)

Abbott-Smith

ψυχή, -ῆς, ἡ, [in LXX very freq. for נֶפֶשׁ, sometimes for לֵבַב לֵב, etc. ;]

1. breath (Lat. anima), breath of life, life (Hom., al.; in Arist., of the vital principle): Mt 6:25, Mk 3:4 10:45, Lk 12:22, Jo 10:11, Ac 20:10, 24, II Co 1:23, Phl 2:30, I Th 2:8, al.
2. the soul,
(a) as the seat of the will, desires and affections: Mt 26:38, Mk 12:30 (LXX) 14:34, Lk 1:46, Jo 10:24, Ac 14:2, Phl 1:27, al.; ἐκ ψυχῆς, from the heart, heartily: Eph 6:6, Col 3:23;
(b) as a periphrasis for person or self (freq. in translation from Semitic originals, v. M, Pr., 87; Robinson, Gospels, 113 ff.; but also freq. in cl., v. LS, s.v. II, 2; Edwards, Lex., App. A.): Mt 11:29, Mk 8:36, Ac 2:41, Ro 2:9, I Pe 3:20, al.; πᾶσα ψ., Ac 2:43 3:23 (LXX), Ro 13:1; ψ. ζῶσα (ζωῆς), I Co 15:45, Re 16:3;
(c) as the object of divine grace and eternal salvation: He 13:17, Ja 1:21 5:20, I Pe 1:9, 22 2:11 4:19, III Jo 2.
SYN.: v.s. νοῦς, πνεῦμα, ψυχικός, and cf. ICC on I Th 5:23, Lft., Notes, 88 f.

Abbott-Smith References

Liddell-Scott-Jones

meaning of: ψυχή

ψυχή-ή, ἡ,

life, λύθη ψ. τε μένος τε [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ψυχὰς παρθέμενοι at hazard of their lives, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; λίσσου᾽ ὑπὲρ ψ. καὶ γούνων by your life,[Refs 5th c.BC+] to save their life, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ὃ ἂν θέλῃ, ψυχῆς ὠνεῖται [θυμός] in exchange for life, [NT+7th c.BC+]; τῆς ἐμῆς ψ. γεγώς[Refs 5th c.BC+]; ποινὴν τῆς Αἰσώπου ψ. satisfaction for the life of [NT+5th c.BC+]; δεῖρον ἄχρις ἡ ψ... ἐπὶ χειλέων λειφθῇ within an inch of his life, [Refs 3rd c.BC+] —the phrase ἐν τῇ χειρὶ τὴν ψ. ἔχοντα taking his life in his hands, is probably falsa lectio in [LXX+4th c.BC+]; of life in animals, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ἡ φύσις τοιαύτη πάντων ὅσσα ψ. ἔχει Democrit.278; ἐπῴζει καὶ ποιεῖ ψ. ἔχειν (of incubation) [LXX+5th c.BC+]; ἡ ψ. πάσης σαρκὸς αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐστιν[LXX]

__2 metaphorically of things dear as life, χρήματα γὰρ ψ... βροτοῖσι [Refs 8th c.BC+]; so as an endearing name, [Refs 1st c.AD+]
__II in [Refs 8th c.BC+], departed spirit, ghost (ὑποτίθεται [Ὅμηρος] τὰς ψ. τοῖς εἰδώλοις τοῖς ἐν τοῖς κατόπτροις φαινομένοις ὁμοίας.. ἃ καθάπαξ ἡμῖν ἐξείκασται καὶ τὰς κινήσεις μιμεῖται, στερεμνιώδη δὲ ὑπόστασιν οὐδεμίαν ἔχει εἰς ἀντίληψιν καὶ ἁφήν [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ψ. καὶ εἴδωλον [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ψυχὰς ἡρώων, opposed to αὐτούς,[Refs 8th c.BC+]; sometimes hardly distinct from signification[Refs]; in swoons it leaves the body, τὸν δὲ λίπε ψ. [Refs]; so in later writers (seldom in Trag.), σὺν Ἀγαμεμνονίᾳ ψυχᾷ [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἑὰν ψυχὰν κομίξαι[Refs 5th c.BC+]; ψ. σοφαί, perhaps 'wise ghosts', [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__III the immaterial and immortal soul, first in Pindar, ἐς τὸν ὕπερθεν ἅλιον κείνων.. ἀνδιδοῖ [Φερσεφόνα] ψυχὰς πάλιν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; αἰθὴρ μὲμ ψυχὰς ὑπεδέξατο, σώ[ματα δὲ χθών] [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ὁπόταμ ψ. προλίπῃ φάος ἀελίοιο [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__IV the conscious self or personality as centre of emotions, desires, and affections, χερσὶ καὶ ψυχᾷ δυνατοί [Refs 5th c.BC+]: hence regarded in abstraction, τὸ παρεχόμενον ἡμῶν ἕκαστον τοῦτ᾽ εἶναι μηδὲν ἀλλ᾽ ἢ τὴν ψ., τὸ δὲ σῶμα ἰνδαλλόμενον ἡμῶν ἑκάστοις ἕπεσθαι [Refs 5th c.BC+]; οἴμοι ψυχή woe is me! [LXX]; καὶ ἐρῶ τῇ ψ. μου, “ψυχή, ἔχεις πολλὰ ἀγαθά” [NT]; in periphrases, ψ. Ὀρέστου, ={Ὀρέστης}, [Refs 5th c.BC+] his wits, [Refs]; so ψυχαί absolutely, ={ἄνθρωποι, ψ. ὀλέσασα} [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ψ. πολλαὶ ἔθανον many souls perished, [NT+5th c.BC+]; in referring to persons, ὅταν μεγάλη ψ. φυῇ [Refs 5th c.BC+]; καλεῖται γοῦν ἡ ψ. Κρινοκοράκα the creature, [NT+4th c.BC+]: generally, being, ψυχὴ ζῶσα living creature, [LXX]
__IV.2 of various aspects of the self, ἐν πολέμοιο μάχαις τλάμονι ψ. παρέμειν) enduring heart, [Refs 5th c.BC+] poor-spirited, [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__IV.3 of the emotional self, ὑπείργασμαι μὲν εὖ ψυχὴν ἔρωτι [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τίν᾽ οἴεσθ᾽ αὐτὴν ψ. ἕξειν, ὅταν ἐμὲ ῒδ; how will she feel? [Refs 4th c.BC+]; μία ψ., proverbial of friends, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ψ. μία ἤστην probably in [Refs 2nd c.AD+]; of appetite, ψυχῇ διδόντες ἡδονήν [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__IV.4 of the moral and intellectual self, ἀπὸ πάμπαν ἀδίκων ἔχειν ψ. [Refs 5th c.BC+]; τὸ σῶμα ἀπειρηκὸς ἡ ψ. συνεξέσωσεν.. διὰ τὸ μὴ ξυνειδέναι ἑαυτῇ the mind conscious of innocence, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἀπὸ τῆς ψ. φιλεῖν with all the heart, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; οὐκ ἐᾷ ἡμᾶς οὐδὲ ψυχῆς λαχεῖν he won't let us call our soul our own, [Refs 2nd c.AD+]
__IV.5 of animals, ψ. μεγαλόφρων, of a horse, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ψ. χηνός, ὀρτυγίου, [Refs 4th c.BC+]
__IV.6 of inanimate things, πᾶσα πολιτεία ψ. πόλεώς ἐστιν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; also of the spirit of an author, [Refs 1st c.BC+]
__V Philosophical uses:
__V.1 In the early physicists, of the primary substance, the source of life and consciousness, ὁρίζονται πάντες (i.e. οἱ πρότεροι) τὴν ψ. τρισίν, κινήσει, αἰσθήσει, τῷ ἀσωμάτῳ [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ψυχῇσιν θάνατος ὕδωρ γενέσθαι, ὕδατι δὲ θάνατος γῆν γενέσθαι, ἐκ γῆς δὲ ὕδωρ γίνεται, ἐξ ὕδατος δὲ ψ. (i.e. πῦρ) [Refs 6th c.BC+]; καρδία ψυχῆς καὶ αἰσθήσιος [ἀρχά] [Refs 5th c.BC+]; Δημόκριτος πῦρ τι καὶ θερμόν θησιν αὐτὴν (i.e. ψυχὴν) εἶναι[Refs]
__V.2 the spirit of the universe, ψ. εἰς τὸ μέσον [τοῦ κόσμου] θείς [Refs 5th c.BC+]; ἐν τῷ ὅλῳ τινὲς [τὴν ψ.] μεμεῖχθαί φασιν, ὅθεν ἴσως καὶ Θαλῆς ᾠήθη πάντα πλήρη θεῶν εἶναι[Refs 3rd c.BC+]; ψ. [κόσμου] [Refs 1st c.AD+]; περὶ ψυχᾶς κόσμου καὶ φύσιος, title of work by [Refs 5th c.BC+]
__V.3 In [Refs 5th c.BC+] the immaterial principle of movement and life, ὅταν παρῇ [ψυχὴ] τῷ σώματι, αἴτιόν ἐστι τοῦ ζῆν αὐτῷ [Refs 5th c.BC+]; its presence is requisite for thought, σοφία καὶ νοῦς ἄνευ ψ. οὐκ ἂν γενοίσθην [Refs 4th c.BC+]; the tripartite division of ψ., οἱ δὲ περὶ Πλάτωνα καὶ Ἀρχύτας καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ Πυθαγόρειοι τὴν ψ. τριμερῆ ἀποφαίνονται, διαιροῦντες εἰς λογισμὸν καὶ θυμὸν καὶ ἐπιθυμίαν [Refs 5th c.BC+]; in the Stoics and Epicureans, σῶμα ἡ ψ. Zeno and [Refs 3rd c.BC+]; of the scala naturae, τὰ μὲν ἕξει διοικεῖται, τὰ δὲ φύσει, τὰ δ᾽ ἀλόγῳ ψ., τὰ δὲ καὶ λόγον ἐχούσῃ καὶ διάνοιαν [Refs 4th c.BC+]; in the Neo-Platonists characterized by discursive thinking, τοὺς λογισμοὺς ψυχῆς εἶναι ἐνεργήματα [Refs 3rd c.AD+]; related to νοῦς as image to archetype, εἰκών τίς ἐστι νοῦ [ψ.] [Refs]; present in entirety in every part, πάρεστι πᾶσα πανταχοῦ ψ. [Refs]; animal and vegetable bodies possess οἷον σκιὰν ψυχῆς [Refs 5th c.AD+]
__VI butterfly or moth, [Refs 4th c.BC+]
__VI.2 τριπόλιον, Ps.-[Refs 1st c.AD+]
__VII Psyche, in the allegory of Psyche and Eros, [Refs 8th c.BC+] 'blow, breathe'; τὸν δὲ λίπε ψ. [Refs 8th c.BC+] means 'his spirit left his body', and so λειποψυχέω means 'swoon', not 'become breathless'; ἀπὸ δὲ ψ. ἐκάπυσσε [Refs 8th c.BC+] means 'she gasped out her spirit', i.e. 'swooned'; the resemblance of ἄμπνυτο 'recovered consciousness' to ἀμπνέω 'recover breath' is deceptive, see at {ἄμπνυτο, ἔμπνυτο}: when concrete the Homeric ψ. is rather warm blood than breath,[Refs 8th c.BC+] escapes through a wound; compare ψυχοπότης, ψυχορροφέω, and [Refs 5th c.BC+]

_{LSJ Scripture Refs: Mark.8.37 ☩ Luke.12.20 ☩ LXX.1Kgs.19.10 ☩ Matt.2.20 ☩ John.10.11 ☩ LXX.Ps.118.109* ☩ LXX.1Kgs.19.5 ☩ LXX.Gen.1.30 ☩ LXX.Lev.17.11 ☩ LXX.Deut.12.23 ☩ LXX.Mic.7.1 ☩ Luke.12.19 ☩ LXX.Gen.46.15 ☩ LXX.Exod.12.4 ☩ 1Pet.3.20 ☩ LXX.Num.6.6 ☩ Rom.13.1 ☩ LXX.Gen.1.24}