τέκνον G5043
Child or offspring, whether biological, spiritual, or as a warm vocative address to a younger person.
A rich term for child or offspring rooted in the verb tiktō ('to give birth'), teknon carries both biological and relational weight. In the Gospels it describes literal children and descendants (Matt 2:18; 3:9), while Paul extends it powerfully to spiritual children of faith (Gal 4:28). As a vocative it becomes an intimate address — Jesus says 'teknon' to the paralytic (Mark 2:5) and to his disciples (Mark 10:24), conveying parental tenderness. The multilingual evidence is consistent: Spanish hijos, French enfant, and German Kinder all track the biological sense, while the vocative usage stands apart in passages where direct address carries emotional warmth.
1. child, offspring — The primary sense of child or offspring, covering biological descendants, spiritual children, and metaphorical progeny. Used referentially across all cases and numbers. Spanish hijos, French enfant, and German Kinder uniformly render this sense. Jesus declares that God can raise up 'children' (tekna) to Abraham from stones (Matt 3:9), and Paul speaks of believers as 'children of promise' (Gal 4:28). 89×
AR["أَبنائِ","أَولادًا","أَولادٌ","أَولادِكُم","أَوْلادِكُمْ","أَوْلَادًا","أَوْلَادٌ","أَوْلَادَكِ","أَوْلَادَهُ","أَوْلَادُ","أَوْلَادُهُ","أَوْلَادِ","أَوْلَادِنَا","أَوْلَادِهَا","الأَبْنَاءِ","الْأَبْنَاءِ"]·ben["সন্তান","সন্তানদের","সন্তানেরা"]·DE["Kind","Kinder"]·EN["children"]·FR["enfant"]·heb["בָּנִים","הַיְלָדִים","יְלָדִים","יְלָדֶיהָ","יְלָדַיִךְ","יַלְדֵיכֶם"]·HI["तो","बचचोन","बचचोन-को","बच्चों","बच्चों-को","संतान","संतानों","संतानों-द्वारा","सन्तान","सन्तानों-को"]·ID["anak","anak-anak","itu"]·IT["figlio"]·jav["anak","anak-anak","lare,","lare-lare,","lare-lare;","para-anak","para-putra","para-putra,","putra","putra,","putra-putra","putra-putranipun"]·KO["자녀들","자녀들-을","자녀들-이","자녀들과","자녀들에게","자녀들을","자녀들의","자녀들이"]·PT["filhos","filhos,"]·RU["детей","детей,","дети","детям"]·ES["hijos"]·SW["au","watoto"]·TR["çocuklar","çocuklara","çocukları","çocuklarımızın","çocukların","çocuklarından","çocuklarını","çocuklarınıza"]·urd["بچوں","بچوں-پر","بچوں-کو","بچوں-کی","بچّے","بچے","بیٹے"]
Matt 2:18, Matt 3:9, Matt 7:11, Matt 10:21, Matt 15:26, Matt 18:25, Matt 19:29, Matt 27:25, Mark 7:27, Mark 7:27, Mark 10:29, Mark 10:30 (+38 more)
▼ 1 more sense below
Senses
2. dear child (address) — A vocative use functioning as an affectionate form of address from an elder to a younger person — 'my child,' 'dear children.' Distinguished from sense 1 not by referent but by pragmatic force: it conveys tenderness and intimacy. Jesus addresses the paralytic as 'teknon' before healing him (Mark 2:5), and uses it with his disciples (Mark 10:24). Spanish Hijo mío and German mein Kind capture this warmth. 10×
AR["أَبناءَ","الأَولادُ","يا بُنَيَّ","يا-أولادي","يا-ابني","يا-بُنَيَّ","يَا-بَنِيَّ","يَا-بُنَيَّ","يَا-وَلَدِي"]·ben["বাছা","সন্তান","সন্তান,","সন্তানগণ","সন্তানেরা"]·DE["Kind","Kinder"]·EN["Child","Children","child","children"]·FR["Kinder","enfant"]·heb["בְּנִי","בְּנֵי","בֵּן","בֵּנִי","בָּנִים","יְלָדִים,","יְלָדַי","יֶלֶד"]·HI["पुत्र","बचचे","बचचो","बच्चो","बेटा","संतान","हे-बच्चे","हे-बालक"]·ID["Anak","Anak-anak","Anak-anak,","Nak,","anak","anak-anak,","anak-anakku"]·IT["figlio"]·jav["Anak-anak","Anakku,","Putra","anak","putra,","putra;"]·KO["아들아","아이야","자녀들","자녀들,","자녀들아"]·PT["Filho","Filho,","Filhos","filhinhos","filho","filhos,"]·RU["Дети","Дети,","Дитя","Сын,","Чадо","дети","детьми,","дитя"]·ES["Hijo","Hijos","hijitos","hijo","hijos"]·SW["Mtoto","Mtoto,","Mwanangu","Watoto","mwanangu;","nenda","watoto"]·TR["Cocuklar","Evlat","Evlat,","dogal-olarak","Çocuk","Çocuklar","çocuklarım","çocuğum"]·urd["بچو","بچے","بیٹا","بیٹے"]
Related Senses
H0376 1. man, person, human male (2130×)H0001 1. father, immediate male parent (1031×)H0251 1. brother (blood sibling) (573×)H0120 1. man, human being (individual/generic) (527×)H0802 1. woman, female person (519×)G0444 1. human being, person (469×)G3962 1. father or divine Father (413×)G0080 1. brother, fellow believer (343×)H0802 2. wife, spouse (255×)H0517 1. mother, female parent (217×)G0435 1. man, male person (202×)G1135 1. woman, adult female (190×)H2233 1. offspring, descendants (172×)H0001 2. ancestor, forefather (146×)H5288 1. Youth, young man (122×)H0269 1. sister (female sibling) (113×)H1755 1. generation, contemporaries (96×)G0444 2. people, humankind (86×)H3206 1. child, boy, youth (86×)H2145 1. male (human being) (79×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
τέκνον, τό, (τίκτω,--οὐκ ἔστι μήτηρ ἡ κεκλημένου τέκνου τοκεύς, τροφὸς δὲ.. Refs 4th c.BC+, child, ἄλοχοι καὶ νήπια τέκνα Refs 8th c.BC+; γυναῖκες καὶ τ. Refs 5th c.BC+, etc.: the singular is used by Refs 8th c.BC+ only in vocative, as a form of address from elders to their youngers, my son, my child, sometimes with masculine adjective, φίλε τέκνον Refs 8th c.BC+: the relative pronoun or…