μηδᾰμ-ῶς G3365
by no means, certainly not, in no way; a strong negative adverb expressing absolute refusal or denial
Absolutely not, by no means, in no way whatsoever. Peter uses it twice in identical contexts—his vision of unclean animals (Acts 10:14, 11:8). When commanded to kill and eat, he protests: 'By no means, Lord!' The repetition emphasizes his horror at the idea of eating ritually unclean food. Classical Greek used it as an emphatic negative in replies or arguments. The adverb compounds three negatives (μή + δέ + ἁμῶς), creating the strongest possible denial.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Peter's identical protest in Acts 10:14 and 11:8 (recounting the same event) captures visceral refusal based on deep conviction—decades of kosher practice aren't easily overcome. The classical use as strong negative in replies fits perfectly. The triple-negative construction (evident in the etymology) makes this about as emphatic as Greek can get. Most translations use the strongest negative available: 'By no means,' 'Certainly not,' German keineswegs (in no wise). 2×
AR["حَاشَا"]·ben["কখনই-না"]·DE["keineswegs"]·EN["by-no-means"]·FR["Μηδαμῶς"]·heb["חָלִילָה"]·HI["कदापि-नहीं"]·ID["Tidak-mungkin"]·IT["per-niente"]·jav["Sampun,"]·KO["결코", "절대로-아니요"]·RU["Никак"]·ES["De-ninguna-manera"]·SW["La-hasha,"]·TR["asla"]·urd["ہرگز-نہیں"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
μηδᾰμ-ῶς, adverb of μηδαμός, ={μηδαμῇ}, Refs 5th c.BC+: in replies, as a strong negative, Refs 4th c.BC+