Greek word · G2486

ἰχθύς

ichthys

fish

Fish, especially as food.

Appears 20 times in 18 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated November 01, 2026

What it means

ἰχθύς, -ύoς, ὁ

[in LXX for דָּג, דָּגָה ;]

a fish: Matthew 7:10, Mark 6:38, al.

(AS)

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

Range of meaning: Fish, especially as food.
Against the English: No real difference. Modern readers may simply not realise how basic a food fish was in Galilee.
Used elsewhere in the period: Josephus (Jewish War 3.506–521) describes the Sea of Galilee and its many kinds of fish. The town of Magdala was known in Greek as Taricheae ('salted-fish works'). In the Gospels, bread and fish together make up the ordinary meal (feeding of the 5,000; John 21:9–13).

Range of meaning: Fish of any kind, fresh or preserved.
Against the English: KJV's "fishes" is the older English plural and means the same thing. English readers may picture a whole fresh fish for cooking, when these were more likely small preserved fish.
Used elsewhere in the period: John 6:9 uses opsarion, "a little fish" or "relish", meaning the savoury food eaten with bread. Magdala on the lake was known in Greek as Taricheae, "the place of salted fish" (Strabo, Geography 16.2.45; Josephus). Salting and pickling fish were major industries around the Sea of Galilee.

Range of meaning: Ichthys means fish as living creatures or a catch. Megas means large in physical size (also great, important, loud, depending on context).
Against the English: KJV 'great fishes' means large fish. A modern ear might hear 'excellent', but the Greek is about size.
How it drifted: Older English used 'great' for physical size, a sense that has faded in favour of 'excellent'.
Used elsewhere in the period: The lake's commercially important fish included the large musht (tilapia, popularly 'St Peter's fish') and barbels. The famous Christian acrostic ΙΧΘΥΣ ('Jesus Christ, God's Son, Saviour') is a 2nd–3rd century development.

Matthew · 5

Matthew 7:10 ἰχθὺν a fish

Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?
Matthew 14:17 ἰχθύας. fish.

“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

Here: Most likely small fish preserved by salting or drying. These were the ordinary relish eaten with bread around the Sea of Galilee and could be carried on a journey.
Matthew 14:19 ἰχθύας, fish,

And He directed the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He spoke a blessing. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.

Here: Fish, probably dried or salted and eaten with bread as a relish (John uses ὀψάριον, a word for that kind of relish fish). It was everyday food from the Sea of Galilee.
Matthew 15:36 ἰχθύας, fish,

Taking the seven loaves and the fish, He gave thanks and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.

Here: Fish, which v. 34 calls 'little fish' (ichthydia). They were most likely salted or dried fish from the Sea of Galilee, eaten with bread as a relish.
Matthew 17:27 ἰχθὺν fish

“But so that we may not offend them, go to the sea, cast a hook, and take the first fish you catch. When you open its mouth, you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for My tax and yours.”

Here: An ordinary fish from the lake. The text does not say what kind.

Mark · 4

Mark 6:38 ἰχθύας. fish.

“Go and see how many loaves you have,” He told them. And after checking, they said, “Five—and two fish.”
Mark 6:41 ἰχθύας, ἰχθύας fish,, fish

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, Jesus spoke a blessing and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to His disciples to set before the people. And He divided the two fish among them all.

Here: Fish. Around the Sea of Galilee these were most likely salted or dried fish eaten as a relish with bread. John calls them opsaria, a word for fish as a side dish.
Mark 6:43 ἰχθύων. fish.

and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish.

Luke · 7

Luke 5:6 ἰχθύων of fishes

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear.
Luke 5:9 ἰχθύων fish

For he and his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken,
Luke 9:13 ἰχθύες fish

But Jesus told them, “You give them something to eat.” “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered, “unless we go and buy food for all these people.”

Here: Fish from the Sea of Galilee, most likely dried or salted to go with bread, which was common food around the lake.
Luke 9:16 ἰχθύας, fish,

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, Jesus spoke a blessing and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples to set before the people.

Here: Probably small fish, salted or dried, which was the usual relish eaten with bread around the Sea of Galilee.
Luke 11:11 ἰχθύν, ἰχθύος a fish,, a fish

What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?

Here: A staple food in Galilee, eaten alongside bread. It stands for ordinary, nourishing food.
Luke 24:42 ἰχθύος of a fish

So they gave Him a piece of broiled fish,

John · 3

John 21:6 ἰχθύων. fish.

He told them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it there, and they were unable to haul it in because of the great number of fish.

Here: Real fish from the lake. In v. 5 Jesus used the more homely word προσφάγιον, “something to eat with bread,” and here the narrator uses the plain word for fish.
John 21:8 ἰχθύων.¶ fish.

The other disciples came ashore in the boat. They dragged in the net full of fish, for they were not far from land, only about a hundred yards.
John 21:11 ἰχθύων of fish

So Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many, the net was not torn.

Here: The ordinary word for fish as caught creatures. In vv.9, 10 and 13 John switches to ὀψάριον, fish as cooked food. Here the stress is on the haul itself.

1 Corinthians · 1

1 Corinthians 15:39 ἰχθύων. of fish.

Not all flesh is the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another, and fish another.

Here: 'Of fish': creatures of the sea. With this, land, air and water are all covered.

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