ἄν G0302
Modal particle indicating contingency, indefiniteness, or hypothetical conditions; combines with relative pronouns, conjunctions, and verb moods.
An (ἄν) is one of those small Greek particles that carry enormous grammatical weight while resisting direct translation into most modern languages. It signals that a statement is not simply factual but contingent — dependent on conditions, indefinite in scope, or hypothetical in nature. Combined with relative pronouns it creates universalizing expressions like 'whoever' and 'wherever'; in conditional sentences it marks what would have happened; with subjunctive verbs it signals possibility or purpose. Most target languages handle an not by translating it directly but by adjusting verb mood, adding particles, or restructuring the clause entirely. Spanish often uses the subjunctive mood itself to absorb an's force, Korean deploys particles like -든지 for indefiniteness, and Arabic uses man/ma with the jussive. The particle's near-invisibility in translation belies its centrality to Greek modal logic.
Senses
1. indefinite generalizer — Indefinite generalizer — the largest cluster at 89 occurrences, where an combines with relative pronouns and adverbs to form universal indefinite expressions: hos an ('whoever'), ho an ('whatever'), hopou an ('wherever'). In Matt 16:25 'whoever (hos an) wants to save his life will lose it,' the particle transforms a specific 'who' into a universal 'whoever.' Korean -든지 and Spanish -quiera (quienquiera, dondequiera) both deploy dedicated indefiniteness morphology, while Arabic man ('whoever') with the jussive achieves the same universalizing effect. This is the particle's most frequent and most recognizable function in New Testament Greek. 89×
AR["-"]·ben["কখনো", "কেউ", "তবে", "নিশ্চয়ই", "যখন", "যদি"]·DE["-"]·EN["-"]·FR["certes-"]·heb["-", "אֲשֶׁר", "אִם", "אָשִׂים"]·HI["कभि", "कि", "कुछ", "भी"]·ID["-", "pun", "saja"]·IT["-"]·jav["badhé", "dumugi", "ingkang", "manawi", "mawon"]·KO["-하면", "-할-때", "~때까지", "~만약", "~을"]·PT["-", "certamente", "que", "quer-que"]·RU["-", "бы", "бы-ни", "если", "не"]·ES["*", "*-que"]·SW["Amebarikiwa", "ambaye", "anataka", "ataapa", "atamwacha", "haya", "kuvunjwa", "kwa", "kwa-kweli", "litamwangukia", "mtaomba", "na", "niwaweke", "wabia", "wakati", "yote"]·TR["-"]·urd["اگر", "بھی", "کبھی", "کوئی", "کہ"]
Matt 15:5, Matt 16:25, Matt 16:28, Matt 18:6, Matt 19:9, Matt 20:27, Matt 21:22, Matt 21:44, Matt 22:44, Matt 23:16, Matt 23:16, Matt 23:18 (+38 more)
2. counterfactual conditional — Counterfactual conditional marker — 32 occurrences where an appears in the apodosis of contrary-to-fact conditions, typically with past indicative tenses. In Matt 11:21 'if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre, they would have (an) repented long ago,' the particle signals that the repentance did not actually occur. Spanish's conditional tense (habrían) and German's Konjunktiv II (hätten) both shift to dedicated irrealis morphology to render this force. Korean -었을 것이다 similarly marks the unrealized outcome. The particle is the hinge between real and unreal worlds. 32×
AR["-", "<->", "أَن", "كَانَ", "كُنتُم", "كُنْتُ", "كُنْتُمْ", "مَهْمَا", "هُوَ"]·ben["নিশ্চয়", "নিশ্চয়ই", "যদি", "হয়তো"]·DE["-", "wohl-"]·EN["-", "ever", "would"]·FR["certes-"]·heb["-", "אֲשֶׁר", "אֶת-", "אָשֶׁר", "אוּלַי", "הָיָה", "כְּבָר"]·HI["-", "जिसे-किसी-को", "तो", "भी", "शायद"]·ID["-", "saja"]·IT["-"]·jav["badhé", "ingkang", "kémawon", "mesthi", "sinten-kémawon-ingkang", "〈badhé"]·KO["[혹]", "누구든지", "말했을-것이다", "무엇이든", "무엇이든지", "않았을-것이다", "알았을-것이다", "혹", "혹시"]·PT["a-qualquer", "até", "já", "porventura", "que", "seria", "teríeis"]·RU["бы", "если", "ни"]·ES["*"]·SW["angeweza", "asiye-", "atakapo-", "hangeweza", "mngemjua", "msingeli-", "mta-kapo-", "mtakachoomba", "unao-", "ungeli-", "utakachomwomba", "wangeli-", "yeyote", "‹atakapo-›"]·TR["-", "-e-kadar", "-olurdu", "-olursa", "eğer", "mahkum-etmezdiniz"]·urd["-", "بھی", "تو", "نہ", "کبھی", "کوئی", "کچھ", "کہ", "ہو-گا"]
Matt 10:11, Matt 10:11, Matt 10:14, Matt 10:23, Matt 10:33, Matt 10:42, Matt 11:21, Matt 11:23, Matt 12:7, Matt 12:20, Matt 12:32, Matt 12:50 (+20 more)
3. potential or dubitative — Potential or dubitative — 23 occurrences expressing what might, could, or perhaps would happen. In Luke 1:62 the people were making signs to Zechariah as to 'what he might wish (an)' to name the child; in Acts 8:31 the Ethiopian asks 'how could I (an) understand unless someone guides me?' German wohl and French certes attempt to capture the tentative quality, while Korean uses -ㄹ 수 있다 ('could/might'). This sense is particularly common with the optative mood, which Greek uses to express wishes, possibilities, and polite hesitations. 23×
AR["-", "-إِنَّ", "-إِنْ", "أَن", "أَنَا", "إِنْ", "رُبَّما", "قَد", "مِنَ-ٱلْمُمْكِنِ", "يُمْكِنُ"]·ben["-মতো", "অবশ্যই", "নিশ্চয়", "যদি", "যেন", "রাখি", "সম্ভব", "হতে-পারে", "হয়তো"]·DE["-", "wohl-"]·EN["-", "could", "might"]·FR["certes-"]·heb["-", "אִם", "אֶת", "הֲ-", "הָיִיתִי", "הָיָה", "יְבַקְּשׁוּ", "לוּ", "שֶׁ-"]·HI["-", "कदाचित", "कभी", "कहीं", "कोई", "हो"]·ID["-", "dapat", "kah", "kiranya", "mungkin", "tentunya", "yang"]·IT["-", "forse-"]·jav["-", "badhe", "bokmanawi", "bokmenawi", "dèné", "kados-pundi", "kénging", "mbokmenawi", "mesthi", "saged", "ta"]·KO["-에", "-이냐고", "도대체", "마땅히", "아마", "할-수-있겠느냐", "혹시"]·PT["então", "o", "porventura", "possam", "que"]·RU["-", "бы", "бы-", "да"]·ES["*", "-", "ciertamente"]·SW["angependa", "ingekuwa", "kwa", "kwamba", "kwanza", "labda-", "ni", "wangeweza", "yafunuliwe", "yangekuwa", "yo-yote", "yote"]·TR["-", "-belki", "-şey", "acaba", "belki", "ki-", "muhakkak"]·urd["-", "بھی", "تو", "شاید", "کریں", "کہ", "کہیں", "کیا", "کیسی", "ہو", "یقیناً", "یہ"]
Luke 1:62, Luke 2:26, Luke 2:35, Luke 6:11, Luke 7:39, Luke 15:26, Luke 17:6, Luke 17:6, Luke 17:33, Luke 18:17, Luke 19:23, Luke 20:18 (+11 more)
4. temporal contingency — Temporal contingency — 11 occurrences where an combines with temporal conjunctions (hotan, epan, henika) to mark an event as indefinite in its timing: 'whenever,' 'as soon as,' 'at whatever time.' In Acts 2:35 'until I make your enemies a footstool' the temporal boundary is set but the exact moment is left contingent. Spanish tan pronto como and Korean -할 때마다 ('each time when') deploy temporal-indefiniteness markers. This function is closely related to sense 1 but operates on the time axis rather than on persons or things. 11×
AR["أَنَا", "أَنْ", "عِنْدَما", "مَتَى"]·ben["যখন", "যখনই", "যদি", "সম্ভবত", "হয়তো"]·DE["-", "wohl-"]·EN["-"]·FR["certes"]·heb["אֲשֶׁר", "אֶרְאֶה", "אָז"]·HI["-", "-तो", "आएं", "और", "कभि"]·ID["kalau", "mungkin", "pasti", "setelah"]·IT["forse-", "se"]·jav["kénging", "mbokmenawi", "menawi"]·KO["-면", "-하는-대로", "결코", "그-가", "누구든지", "로", "말씀하시든", "아니", "어떤-이-가", "이것-이"]·PT["-", "porventura", "que"]·RU["-", "бы-", "не", "разве", "только"]·ES["*-que", "que", "tan-pronto-como"]·SW["atakapo", "atakapokuja", "ingeweza", "kadri", "mkipatana", "mtu-yeyote", "pindi", "popote", "wakati"]·TR["-de", "-eger-", "anlaşmayla", "gelebilsin", "göstereceğim", "hangi", "muhtemelen-", "olabilir", "söylerse", "uzaktakilere"]·urd["بھی", "تو", "جب", "شاید", "نہ", "کہ"]
5. subjunctive clause marker — Subjunctive clause marker — 11 occurrences where an functions as a nearly untranslatable grammatical signal in purpose, result, or conditional clauses, contributing modal or hypothetical force without distinct lexical content. In Heb 1:13 and Heb 4:8 the particle appears in subordinate clauses where its role is structural rather than semantic — it marks the clause as non-assertive. Most translations simply absorb it into the subjunctive verb form. This represents the particle at its most grammaticalized, where it has lost any independent translatable meaning and serves purely as a mood indicator. 11×
AR["-", "أَنْ", "إِن", "قَدْ", "كَانَ", "لَ-", "مَن", "يَجْرُؤُ"]·ben["-", "কদাচিৎ", "কি", "বুঝি"]·DE["wohl-"]·EN["-"]·FR["certes"]·heb["אֲשֶׁר", "אִלּוּ", "הָיָה", "הָיוּ", "כִּי", "מִישֶׁהוּ"]·HI["-", "कभी", "कि", "कुछ-भी", "क्या"]·ID["-", "ketika", "mungkin", "pasti", "pun"]·IT["forse-", "se"]·jav["badhé", "menawi", "temtu"]·KO["-라도", "언제나", "하여-"]·PT["-", "porventura", "que", "se", "seria"]·RU["-", "бы", "бы-"]·ES["*", "*-", "-"]·SW["-", "iwe", "ningeweza"]·TR["-", "de-", "ki-"]·urd["-", "بھی", "تو", "کچھ", "کہ", "کیا"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
ἄν, [ᾰ], Epic dialect, Lyric poetry, Ionic dialect, Refs 4th c.AD+, Attic dialect; also κεν) Epic dialect, Aeolic dialect, Thess., κᾱ Doric dialect, Boeotian dialect, El.; the two combined in Epic dialect (below Refs 4th c.BC+, εἰκ ἄνRefs 4th c.BC+:—modal Particle used with Verbs to indicate that the action is limited by circumstances or defined by conditions. In Refs 8th c.BC+ κε is four times…