Greek word · G2981
λαλιά
lalia
speech
Talk, speech, conversation. In classical Greek it can mean chatter or prattle. It is used of a person's characteristic way of speaking, including a regional dialect or accent (BDAG: 1. 'speech, talk'; 2. 'way of speaking, form of speech, manner of expression').
Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
λαλία, -ᾶς, ἡ
[in LXX chiefly for דָּבָר, דִּבְרָה ;]
1. loquacity = Very talkative.
2. talk, speech, conversation: Matthew 26:73 (cf. Ca 43), John 4:42 8:43.†
(AS)
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
Talk, speech, conversation. In classical Greek it can mean chatter or prattle. It is used of a person's characteristic way of speaking, including a regional dialect or accent (BDAG: 1. 'speech, talk'; 2. 'way of speaking, form of speech, manner of expression').
- Against the English
KJV/WEB 'my speech' is accurate, but to a modern ear 'a speech' suggests a formal address. BSB 'what I am saying' and NASB-type 'what I say' smooth it into plain content, which loses the sense of manner or idiom. NIV's 'my language' gets closest to the idea of a tongue someone speaks.
- How it drifted
English 'speech' has narrowed toward 'oration'. Most modern versions merge lalia and logos into one idea of 'what I say'.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Matthew 26:73: 'your lalia gives you away'. Peter's Galilean accent shows where he is from. John 4:42: the Samaritans believe 'no longer because of your lalia' (the woman's talk). In the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), Song 4:3 praises the beloved's lovely speech.
- Range of meaning
Speech, talk, what someone says. Also a way of speaking (a dialect or accent). In classical Greek it can lean toward 'chatter' or 'idle talk'. In the Koine Greek of the New Testament it is usually neutral.
- Against the English
KJV 'saying', WEB 'speaking', BSB 'words', and others 'what you said'. None of them put the woman down. A few commentators suggest the word itself belittles her ('your chatter'), but that is not well supported.
- Used elsewhere in the period
In classical Greek (LSJ) it has the senses 'talk, chatter, loquacity'. In the Septuagint, Song 4:3 says 'your speech is lovely', which is plainly not pejorative. In the New Testament, Matt 26:73 has 'your accent (lalia) gives you away', and in John 8:43 Jesus uses it of his own speech: 'Why do you not understand my lalia?'
- Range of meaning
Talk, speech, way of speaking. In wider Greek usage it often has a bad sense: chatter, prattle, loquacity (LSJ). In the NT it is neutral: 'speech, accent' (Matthew 26:73; John 4:42; 8:43).
- Against the English
'Much talk' (WEB) is literal. 'Much babbling' (KJV) and 'being talkative' (NRSV) bring out the bad sense, which 'much' makes clear here.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Proverbs 10:19: 'In the multitude of words sin is not lacking.' Ecclesiastes 5:3 and 10:14 connect the fool with many words. Mishnah Avot 1:17 (a later rabbinic collection, about AD 200): 'I found nothing better for a person than silence… whoever multiplies words brings sin.'
Where it appears
Matthew · 1
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Matthew 26:73 λαλιά speech
After a little while, those standing nearby came up to Peter. “Surely you are one of them,” they said, “for your accent gives you away.”
John · 2
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John 4:42 λαλιὰν speech
They said to the woman, “We now believe not only because of your words; we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man truly is the Savior of the world.”
Here: 'Talk, what you said, your telling.' It is a different word from the 'word' (logos) used of Jesus in v. 41 and of her in v. 39. Whether the change is a mild put-down is debated (see studies).
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John 8:43 λαλιὰν speech
Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you are unable to accept My message.
Here: His talk: how he speaks, his idiom, even his 'accent'. It is the audible surface of what he says, as distinct from the message underneath (logos, below).
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.