Greek word · G2019

ἐπιφωνέω

epiphōneō

to shout

To call out or shout in response to something; to shout acclamations or demands as a crowd. In the New Testament it is used only by Luke: of the crowd shouting "Crucify!" (Luke 23:21), of the mob shouting against Paul (Acts 22:24), and here.

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated November 14, 2026

What it means

ἐπι-φωνέω, -ῶ

[in LXX: I Est.9:47 AR, 2Ma.1:23, 3Ma.7:13 * ;]

to call out, shout: with accusative of thing(s), Acts 21:34; with dative of person(s), Acts 22:24; before λέγοντες, Luke 23:21; prat. rect., Acts 12:22.†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Acts 12:22

Range of meaning: To call out or shout in response to something; to shout acclamations or demands as a crowd. In the New Testament it is used only by Luke: of the crowd shouting "Crucify!" (Luke 23:21), of the mob shouting against Paul (Acts 22:24), and here.
Against the English: KJV "gave a shout" sounds like a single outburst. The imperfect tense pictures continuing or repeated shouting, a chant (ESV, YLT "were shouting"; BSB "began to shout").
Used elsewhere in the period: In Hellenistic Greek the verb and its noun (epiphōnēma) are used for exclamations and crowd acclamations. Roman and Hellenistic sources describe organised rhythmic acclamations of rulers at public events. Cassius Dio, for example, reports the trained claques of Nero hailing his singing in divine terms.

From the study of Acts 21:34

Range of meaning: To call out, shout at or toward someone, to cry out in response. Often used of a crowd's acclamation or demand.
Against the English: English versions all say 'shout' or 'cry out', which is accurate. The verb's habit of describing crowds shouting at someone in authority is not visible in English.
Used elsewhere in the period: In the New Testament it is used almost only by Luke. The crowd shouts 'Crucify, crucify him!' at Pilate (Luke 23:21). The people shout that Herod has 'the voice of a god' (Acts 12:22). The Jerusalem crowd again 'shouts out' in this episode (Acts 22:24 in some texts). Compare the similar phrase in Acts 19:32 about the Ephesus riot: 'some were crying one thing, some another'.

Where it appears

Luke · 1

Luke 23:21 ἐπεφώνουν they were crying out

but they kept shouting, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”

Acts · 3

Acts 12:22 ἐπεφώνει· were crying out;

And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!”

Here: To shout out in response to someone. The imperfect tense (an ongoing past action) shows a chant taken up and repeated, a rolling public acclamation rather than a single remark.
Acts 21:34 ἐπεφώνουν were crying out

Some in the crowd were shouting one thing, and some another. And since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be brought into the barracks.

Here: The imperfect tense pictures shouting that kept going. In Luke's writing this verb is used for crowds yelling at authorities, as in 'Crucify him!' (Luke 23:21).
Acts 22:24 ἐπεφώνουν they were crying out

the commander ordered that Paul be brought into the barracks. He directed that Paul be flogged and interrogated to determine the reason for this outcry against him.

Here: The tense shows ongoing, repeated shouting: 'they kept shouting at him.' The prefix gives the sense of shouting aimed at someone, here in hostility (compare 'Away with such a fellow!' in v. 22).

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.