Greek word · G2827

κλίνω

klinō

to bow/lay down

To incline, bend, bow; to lay down (the head, to rest); of the day, to decline toward evening (Luke 24:29); to turn an enemy army to flight.

Appears 7 times in 7 verses of the Greek New Testament. · Updated October 31, 2026

What it means

κλίνω

[in LXX chiefly for נָטָה ;]

1. to make to bend, to bow: τ. κεφαλήν (of one dying), John 19:30; τ. πρόσωτον (of terrified persons), Luke 24:5.

2. to make to lean, to rest: τ. κεφαλήν (in sleep), Matthew 8:20, Luke 9:58.

3. As in Hom., of soldiers, to turn (to flight), παρεμβολάς, Hebrews 11:34.

4. In late Gk. (as mid, in cl.), to decline: intrans., ἡ ἡμέρα, Luke 9:12 24:29.†

(AS)

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

Range of meaning: To incline, bend, bow; to lay down (the head, to rest); of the day, to decline toward evening (Luke 24:29); to turn an enemy army to flight.
Against the English: 'Bowed his head' is accurate. It may also carry the sense of laying the head down to rest.
Used elsewhere in the period: The exact phrase 'to klinō the head' appears in Matthew 8:20 and Luke 9:58: 'the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.'

Range of meaning: To bend, incline or lean. Used of laying something down, of a day 'declining' toward evening (Luke 9:12; 24:29), of armies giving way, and of bowing the head. 'To lay/recline the head' is a natural way of saying 'to lie down and rest or sleep'.
Against the English: 'Lay his head' captures it well. The Greek subjunctive ('where he might lay it') makes it sound like an open question with no answer. KJV's 'hath not where to lay his head' keeps that shape.
Used elsewhere in the period: The exact phrase klinas tēn kephalēn appears in John 19:30, where Jesus 'bowed his head' and gave up his spirit. Some readers since the early church have linked the two: he found a place to lay his head only on the cross. That link is a later reflection, not something Matthew draws.

Range of meaning: To bend, incline, lay down (one's head, Matt 8:20), or for a day to decline toward evening (Luke 24:29). In military Greek, transitively, it means to make an enemy line bend and give way, that is, to rout it.
Against the English: "Put to flight" (BSB), "turned to flight" (KJV) and "caused to flee" (WEB) give the result. YLT's "caused to give way" keeps the picture in the verb.
Used elsewhere in the period: This military use goes back to Homer (Iliad 5.37: the Greeks "made the Trojans give way"). BDAG lists Heb 11:34 under the sense "cause to give way, put to flight".

Matthew · 1

Matthew 8:20 κλίνῃ.¶ He may lay.

Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”

Here: The verb means to bend, incline or lay down. Its mood expresses a deliberative question: 'where might he lay it?' The picture is of someone with no bed of his own to come home to at night.

Luke · 4

Luke 9:12 κλίνειν. to decline.

As the day neared its end, the Twelve came to Jesus and said, “Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside for lodging and provisions. For we are in a desolate place here.”
Luke 9:58 κλίνῃ.¶ He may lay.

Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”
Luke 24:5 κλινουσῶν bowing

As the women bowed their faces to the ground in terror, the two men asked them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?

Here: 'Bowing' or 'keeping bowed'. The present tense pictures the women still bent low while the men speak. It is the posture of mortals before heavenly visitors, and a natural reaction to their dazzling clothes.
Luke 24:29 κέκλικεν has declined

But they pleaded with Him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.” So He went in to stay with them.

John · 1

John 19:30 κλίνας having bowed

When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished.” And bowing His head, He yielded up His spirit.

Here: 'Having bowed/laid down his head.' The bowing comes before the death in John's order, so it reads as a deliberate act rather than a head slumping after death.

Hebrews · 1

Hebrews 11:34 ἔκλιναν put to flight

quenched the raging fire, and escaped the edge of the sword; who gained strength from weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight.

Here: "They made [the lines] bend" and so put them to flight. This is old military Greek for breaking an enemy line (Homer already says the Greeks "made the Trojans give way"). The picture is a battle line that buckles and then collapses.

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