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Greek verb · G630

ἀπολύω

apolyoap-ol-oo'-o

to set free, release; to let go, dismiss

63 uses in the Greek text, one for each word STEP Bible has tagged with this key

Concordance spelling: apolýō

Word page · Part of the concordance, one page for every word of the Hebrew and Greek text. Strong's G630is this word's number in James Strong's 1890 index of the King James Bible.

  • 6 of 27
    New Testament books
  • 26
    spellings
  • 2
    meanings

The definition in full

Strong's key (1890) · G630

to free fully, i.e. (literally) relieve, release, dismiss (reflexively, depart), or (figuratively) let die, pardon or (specially) divorce

The King James renders it: (let) depart, dismiss, divorce, forgive, let go, loose, put (send) away, release, set at liberty.

James Strong, The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890), public domain. Strong indexed the King James text, and this site quotes his entry as that index.

Summary

apolyo is rendered "to set free, release; to let go, dismiss". It stands 63 times in the Greek text, across six books.

  • Eighteen of the uses stand in Matthew, more than in any other book.
  • The lexicon lists two meanings for it, beginning with "to set free, release".
  • Its first use in canonical order opens the ledger below.Matthew 1:19Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly, he resolved to divorce her quietly.
  • The Greek text spells it twenty-six different ways.

The first use

Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly, he resolved to divorce her quietly.

Matthew 1:19ἀπολῦσαι

The first use, in the order of the New Testament's books.

Where the word stands

Eighteen of the word's sixty-three uses are in Matthew.

The other 21 New Testament books never use the word.

What the word means

The word carries two meanings: to set free, release, and to let go, dismiss.

Each meaning, and the words it is translated by

The English STEP Bible gives each use, word by word, and how many times.
to set free, releaseLuk.13:12Tagged as
  • I may release5
  • to release5
  • he released3
  • released3
  • do release2
  • having dismissed2
  • He sent away2
  • I will release2

and 24 more, 50 uses in all

WhereMatthew 18:27His master had compassion on him, forgave his debt, and released him.
to let go, dismissTagged as
  • do dismiss4
  • to send away4
  • to divorce3
  • is putting away1
  • You dismiss1
WhereMatthew 1:19Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly…

The words built on the same word-part

Each word below begins with the same letters this one begins with. A shared word-part shows a family. It does not settle what any one of them means, so each word carries its own uses on its own page. Scholars call that shared part the stem.

ἀπόλλυμιapollymito destroyUses90
ἀπολαμβάνωapolambanoto get backUses10
ἀπολογέομαιapologeomaito defend oneselfUses10
ἀπολύτρωσιςapolytrosisredemptionUses10
ἀπολείπωapoleipoto leaveUses9
ἀπολογίαapologiadefenceUses7
ἀπολούωapolouoto wash offUses2
ἀπόλαυσιςapolausisenjoymentUses2
ἀπολείχωapoleichoto lickUses1

All 63, in canonical order

Every use, in order

Every use, grouped by book, with its verse.

26 spellings and their grammar

STEP Bible tags every word of the Hebrew and Greek text with its spelling and its grammar. Both lists below count the rows printed underneath, written out in English, with the code beside each one as it was tagged.

How it is spelled

  • ἀπολῦσαι10
  • ἀπολύσω8
  • ἀπέλυσεν7
  • ἀπόλυσον6
  • ἀπολύσῃ5
  • ἀπέλυσαν3
  • ἀπολύειν2
  • Ἀπολυθέντες2
  • ἀπολύσας2
  • ἀπολύων2
  • ἀπέλυεν1
  • ἀπελύθησαν1

and 14 more spellings in the ledger below.

The grammar of each form

  • verb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)11V-AAN
  • verb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singular8V-AAI-3S
  • verb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singular6V-AAM-2S
  • verb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singular6V-AAS-1S
  • verb · aorist active, subjunctive · 3rd person singular5V-AAS-3S
  • verb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person plural4V-AAI-3P
  • verb · aorist active, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine singular2V-AAP-NSM
  • verb · aorist passive, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine plural2V-APP-NPM
  • verb · future active, indicative · 1st person singular2V-FAI-1S
  • verb · present active, infinitive (“to…”)2V-PAN
  • verb · present active, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine singular2V-PAP-NSM
  • verb · aorist active, participle · nominative (subject) · feminine singular1V-AAP-NSF

Matthew

eighteen uses
  • Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and was unwilling to disgrace her publicly, he resolved to divorce her quietly.

    Matthew 1:19

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to send away
  • It has also been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’

    Matthew 5:31

    • ἀπολύσῃapoluseverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 3rd person singulartagged: may divorce
  • But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her. And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

    Matthew 5:32

    • ἀπολύωνapoluonverb · present active, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine singulartagged: is divorcing
  • When evening came, the disciples came to Him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late. Dismiss the crowds so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”

    Matthew 14:15

    • ἀπόλυσονapolusonverb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singulartagged: do dismiss
  • Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of Him to the other side, while He dismissed the crowds.

    Matthew 14:22

    • ἀπολύσῃapoluseverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 3rd person singulartagged: He may have dismissed
  • After He had sent them away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone,

    Matthew 14:23

    • ἀπολύσαςapolusasverb · aorist active, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine singulartagged: having dismissed
  • But Jesus did not answer a word. So His disciples came and urged Him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”

    Matthew 15:23

    • ἀπόλυσονapolusonverb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singulartagged: do dismiss
  • Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “I have compassion for this crowd, because they have already been with Me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may faint along the way.”

    Matthew 15:32

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to send away
  • After Jesus had dismissed the crowds, He got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.

    Matthew 15:39

    • ἀπολύσαςapolusasverb · aorist active, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine singulartagged: having dismissed
  • His master had compassion on him, forgave his debt, and released him.

    Matthew 18:27

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: released
  • Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”

    Matthew 19:3

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to divorce
  • “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses order a man to give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?”

    Matthew 19:7

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to send away
  • Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because of your hardness of heart; but it was not this way from the beginning.

    Matthew 19:8

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to divorce
  • Now I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman, commits adultery.”

    Matthew 19:9

    • ἀπολύσῃapoluseverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 3rd person singulartagged: may divorce
  • Now it was the governor’s custom at the feast to release to the crowd a prisoner of their choosing.

    Matthew 27:15

    • ἀπολύεινapolueinverb · present active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to release
  • So when the crowd had assembled, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?”

    Matthew 27:17

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singulartagged: I may release
  • “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor. “Barabbas,” they replied.

    Matthew 27:21

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singulartagged: I may release
  • So Pilate released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified.

    Matthew 27:26

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: he released

Mark

twelve uses
  • Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”

    Mark 6:36

    • ἀπόλυσονapolusonverb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singulartagged: do dismiss
  • Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of Him to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd.

    Mark 6:45

    • ἀπολύειapolueiverb · present active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: dismisses
  • If I send them home hungry, they will faint along the way. For some of them have come a great distance.”

    Mark 8:3

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singulartagged: I shall send away
  • And about four thousand men were present. As soon as Jesus had dismissed the crowd,

    Mark 8:9

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: He sent away
  • Some Pharisees came to test Him. “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” they inquired.

    Mark 10:2

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to divorce
  • They answered, “Moses permitted a man to write his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away.”

    Mark 10:4

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to send away
  • So He told them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her.

    Mark 10:11

    • ἀπολύσῃapoluseverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 3rd person singulartagged: shall divorce
  • And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery.”

    Mark 10:12

    • ἀπολύσασαapolusasaverb · aorist active, participle · nominative (subject) · feminine singulartagged: having divorced
  • Now it was Pilate’s custom at the feast to release to the people a prisoner of their choosing.

    Mark 15:6

    • ἀπέλυενapeluenverb · imperfect active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: he was releasing
  • “Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” Pilate asked.

    Mark 15:9

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singulartagged: I may release
  • But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release Barabbas to them instead.

    Mark 15:11

    • ἀπολύσῃapoluseverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 3rd person singulartagged: he may release
  • And wishing to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified.

    Mark 15:15

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: he released

Luke

thirteen uses
  • “Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You now dismiss Your servant in peace.

    Luke 2:29

    • ἀπολύειςapolueisverb · present active, indicative · 2nd person singulartagged: You dismiss
  • Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

    Luke 6:37

    • ἀπολύετεapolueteverb · present active, command · 2nd person pluraltagged: do forgive
    • ἀπολυθήσεσθεapoluthesestheverb · future passive, indicative · 2nd person pluraltagged: you will be forgiven
  • The man whom the demons had left begged to go with Jesus. But He sent him away, saying,

    Luke 8:38

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: He sent away
  • As the day neared its end, the Twelve came to Jesus and said, “Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside for lodging and provisions. For we are in a desolate place here.”

    Luke 9:12

    • ἀπόλυσονapolusonverb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singulartagged: do dismiss
  • When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said, “Woman, you are set free from your disability.”

    Luke 13:12

    • ἀπολέλυσαιapolelusaiverb · perfect passive, indicative · 2nd person singulartagged: you have been freed from
  • But they remained silent. Then Jesus took hold of the man, healed him, and sent him on his way.

    Luke 14:4

    • ἀπέλυσεν.¶apelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: let go
  • Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

    Luke 16:18

    • ἀπολύωνapoluonverb · present active, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine singulartagged: is putting away
  • Therefore I will punish Him and release Him.”

    Luke 23:16

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · future active, indicative · 1st person singulartagged: I will release
  • But they all cried out in unison: “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”

    Luke 23:18

    • ἀπόλυσονapolusonverb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singulartagged: do release
  • Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate addressed them again,

    Luke 23:20

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to release
  • A third time he said to them, “What evil has this man done? I have found in Him no offense worthy of death. So after I punish Him, I will release Him.”

    Luke 23:22

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · future active, indicative · 1st person singulartagged: I will release
  • As they had requested, he released the one imprisoned for insurrection and murder, and handed Jesus over to their will.

    Luke 23:25

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: He released

John

five uses
  • But it is your custom that I release to you one prisoner at the Passover. So then, do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”

    John 18:39

    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singulartagged: I may release
    • ἀπολύσωapolusoverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 1st person singulartagged: I may release
  • So Pilate said to Him, “Do You refuse to speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You and authority to crucify You?”

    John 19:10

    • ἀπολῦσαίapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to release
  • From then on, Pilate tried to release Him, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who declares himself a king is defying Caesar.”

    John 19:12

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to release
    • ἀπολύσῃςapolusesverb · aorist active, subjunctive · 2nd person singulartagged: you shall release

Acts

fourteen uses
  • The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus. You handed Him over and rejected Him before Pilate, even though he had decided to release Him.

    Acts 3:13

    • ἀπολύεινapolueinverb · present active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to release
  • After further threats they let them go. They could not find a way to punish them, because all the people were glorifying God for what had happened.

    Acts 4:21

    • ἀπέλυσανapelusanverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person pluraltagged: they let go
  • On their release, Peter and John returned to their own people and reported everything that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

    Acts 4:23

    • Ἀπολυθέντεςapoluthentesverb · aorist passive, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine pluraltagged: Having been let go
  • At this, they yielded to Gamaliel. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and released them.

    Acts 5:40

    • ἀπέλυσανapelusanverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person pluraltagged: released
  • And after they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

    Acts 13:3

    • ἀπέλυσαν.¶apelusanverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person pluraltagged: they sent off
  • So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they assembled the congregation and delivered the letter.

    Acts 15:30

    • ἀπολυθέντεςapoluthentesverb · aorist passive, participle · nominative (subject) · masculine pluraltagged: having been sent off
  • After spending some time there, they were sent off by the brothers in peace to return to those who had sent them.

    Acts 15:33

    • ἀπελύθησανapeluthesanverb · aorist passive, indicative · 3rd person pluraltagged: they were sent away
  • When daylight came, the magistrates sent their officers with the order: “Release those men.”

    Acts 16:35

    • ἀπόλυσονapolusonverb · aorist active, command · 2nd person singulartagged: do release
  • The jailer informed Paul: “The magistrates have sent orders to release you. Now you may go on your way in peace.”

    Acts 16:36

    • ἀπολυθῆτεapolutheteverb · aorist passive, subjunctive · 2nd person pluraltagged: you may be let go
  • And they collected bond from Jason and the others, and then released them.

    Acts 17:9

    • ἀπέλυσανapelusanverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person pluraltagged: they let go
  • So the commander dismissed the young man and instructed him, “Do not tell anyone that you have reported this to me.”

    Acts 23:22

    • ἀπέλυσενapelusenverb · aorist active, indicative · 3rd person singulartagged: dismissed
  • And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been released if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

    Acts 26:32

    • ἀπολελύσθαιapolelusthaiverb · perfect passive, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to have been released
  • They examined me and wanted to release me, because there was no basis for a death sentence against me.

    Acts 28:18

    • ἀπολῦσαιapolusaiverb · aorist active, infinitive (“to…”)tagged: to let go
  • They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit was right when He spoke to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:

    Acts 28:25

    • ἀπελύοντοapeluontoverb · imperfect middle, indicative · 3rd person pluraltagged: they were leaving

Hebrews

one use
  • Be aware that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives soon, I will come with him to see you.

    Hebrews 13:23

    • ἀπολελυμένονapolelumenonverb · perfect passive, participle · accusative (object) · masculine singulartagged: released

Where it leads

How the numbers are counted

Every count on this page comes from STEP Bible's tagged Hebrew and Greek text, the same text the ledger prints. A use is counted once each time the tagging marks a word with this key.

Spellings are counted as the Greek text spells them, with the sentence's own punctuation taken off the word first, so a form that ends a clause is not counted as a second spelling.

The words it stands beside are the nouns, verbs and adjectives immediately before or after it, counted in every verse where the word stands. The article, the conjunctions and the prepositions are left out, because they stand beside every word.

The family is read from the lexicon by the stem the two words share, with the accents off, and a person or a place named on the stem is left out.

Hebrew and Greek text, word tagging and grammar: STEP Bible (www.STEPBible.org), Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0. Their grammar codes are written out in English here and shown as tagged beside each one.

Meaning and senses: STEP Bible TBESG (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0), the Brief lexicon based on Abbott-Smith (1922).

Dictionary key: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890, public domain). English verse text: Berean Standard Bible (public domain, 2023).

Revised 2026-09-05. Every cited work, the sources registry →