πλευρ-ά G4125
Side of the body, rib area; the lateral part of the torso, especially as pierced or displayed in the Passion and Resurrection narratives.
Pleura means 'side' — specifically the lateral area of the human torso around the ribs. While it could refer to ribs themselves in classical Greek, the NT uses it exclusively for the side of Jesus' body. A soldier pierces it with a spear at the crucifixion (John 19:34; possibly Matt 27:49), and the risen Christ shows his wounded side to the disciples as proof of identity (John 20:20, 25, 27). Thomas's demand to put his hand 'into his side' makes pleura a word forever linked to the tangible reality of the resurrection. The Spanish 'costado' and French 'cote' both carry this bodily-side meaning.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The side of the human body, the lateral torso near the ribs. In classical Greek, pleura could denote ribs proper or the flank of an animal, but in the NT it refers exclusively to the side of Jesus' body in the Passion and Resurrection accounts. The multilingual glosses — Spanish 'costado,' French 'cote,' German 'Seite' — all denote the bodily side rather than an abstract 'side.' John 19:34 records the piercing of Jesus' side by a Roman lance, fulfilling Zechariah 12:10. John 20:20, 25, 27 narrate the risen Christ displaying his wounded side as tangible proof of bodily resurrection, culminating in Thomas's confession, 'My Lord and my God.' 6×
AR["جَنْبَ", "جَنْبَهُ", "جَنْبِ", "جَنْبِي"]·ben["পাঁজর", "পাঁজরে", "পাশে"]·DE["Seite", "πλευράν", "πλευρὰν"]·EN["side"]·FR["côté"]·heb["צַד", "צַלְע-ו", "צַלְעוֹ"]·HI["करवट", "पसली", "पसली-को", "बगल"]·ID["lambung", "rusuk"]·IT["fianco"]·jav["lambung", "lambung,"]·KO["옆구리", "옆구리-를", "옆구리를"]·PT["lado"]·RU["бок"]·ES["costado"]·SW["ubavu"]·TR["böğrüme", "böğrüne", "böğrünü"]·urd["پسلی", "پہلو"]
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
πλευρ-ά, ᾶς, ἡ, ={πλευρόν}, rib, rare in singular, βοὸς π. Refs 5th c.BC+: plural, ribs, Refs __2 plural, generally, side of a man or animal, ἄλλοτ᾽ ἐπὶ πλευρὰς κατακείμενος, ἄλλοτε δ᾽ αὖτε ὕπτιος Refs 8th c.BC+; of both sides, ἀνὰ πλευράς τε καὶ ὤμους Refs 8th c.BC+: singular, also, of one side, Refs 5th c.BC+; a side of beef, etc., Refs 3rd c.BC+: the plural form is variant in Refs 5th c.BC+…