Quick Definition
ἐργάτης, ου, ὁ n.m. a field-laborer, workman
Strong's Definition
from 2041; a toiler; figuratively, a teacher
KJV Usage: labourer, worker(-men)
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament © United Bible Societies, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
ἐργάτης, -ov, 6, (ἐργάζυμαιλ) ; 1. as in Grk. writ. a workman, a laborer: usually one who works for hire, Mt. x. 10; Lk. x. 7; 1 Tim. v. 18; esp. an agricultural laborer, Mt. ix. 37sq.; xx. 1sq.8; Lk. x. 2; Jas. ν. 4, (Sap. xvii. 16) ; those whose labor artificers employ [i. e. workmen in the restricted sense], Acts xix. 25 (opp. to τοῖς rexviταις [A. V. craftsmen], ib. 24), ef. Bengel ad loc.; those who as teachers labor to propagate and promote Christianity among men: 2 Co. xi. 13; Phil. iii. 2; 2 Tim. ii. 15, cf. Mt. ix. 37 sq.; Lk. x. 2. worker, perpetrator : τῆς ἀδικίας, Lk. xiii. 27 (τῆς ἀνομίας, 1 Mace. iii. 6 ; τῶν καλῶν καὶ σεμνῶν. Xen. mem. 2, 1, 27).
Mounce Concise Greek Dictionary
ἐργάτης ergatēs 16x
a workman, laborer, Mt. 9:37, 38; 20:1, 2, 8; met. a spiritual workman or laborer, 2 Cor. 11:13; an artisan, artificer, Acts 19:25; a worker, practicer, Lk. 13:27
Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon
** ἐργάτης, -ου, ὁ
(< ἐργάζομαι, q.v.), [in LXX: Wi 17:17, Si 19:1 40:18, I Mac 3:6 * ;]
prop., a field labourer, husbandman: Mt 9:37, 38 20:1, 2, 8, Lk 10:2, Ja 5:4 (cf. Wi, l.c.).
Generally, a workman, labourer: Mt 10:10, Lk 10:7, Ac 19:25 (opp. to τεχνίτης), I Ti 5:18; of Christian teachers, II Co 11:13, Phl 3:2, II Ti 2:15.
a worker, doer: τ. ἀδικίας, Lk 13:27 (cf. I Mac, l.c.).†
Moulton & Milligan — Vocabulary of the Greek NT
ἐργάτης. P Fay 331 (A.D. 125-6) contains payments to ἐργ(άται) at the rate of 9 obols per man: cf. P Oxy X. 1263 (a.D. 128-9) βούλομαι. .. χρήσασθαι τῇ τῶν ἐργατῶν] ποταμοῦ τέχ[νῃ, “1 wish to practise the trade of ἃ riverworker” (Edd.), P Ryl 11. 98(a)!® (A.D. 154-5) ἕξω δὲ σὺν ἐμαυτῷ ἐργάτας δύο, Chrest. I. 96%-17 (accounts of the Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus—a.D. 215) ἐργάταις κίωμd]oact τὸ ξόανον τοῦ θεοῦ πρὸς [ἀἸπάντη[σιν τοῦ] ἡγεμόνος, P Flor I. 35 (a.p. 301) ἐργάτας. .. ὄντ[α]ς εὐθέτους καὶ ἐπιτηδείους. One of the columns of P Lond 1170 verso (A.D. 258-9) (=III. p. 193 ff.), an account of receipts and expenditure by a steward at Theadelphia, is headed— 4° λόγος ἐργατῶν ἀργησάντων. An interesting inscr. dedicated to Αἰών as a deity, Sy// 757 (i/A.p.), ends by describing Αἰών as θείας φύσεως ἐργάτης αἰωνίου πάντα, where the editor thinks that the difficult acc. πάντα is best explained by the accidental omission of a preceding κατά. For the subst. ἐργατεία, used in a concrete sense, see BGU IV. 11599 (time of Augustus) πᾷσαν] ἐργατήαν παρεσσκευακώς (2. παρεσκενακώς), and P Oxy XII. 14508 (A.D. 249-50), and for épyatetw, as in Tobit 5°, cf. P Par 631° (B.c. 165) (=P Petr III. p. 26) ot διὰ τὴν τῶν δεόντων σπάνιν ἐργατεύοντες πορίζονται τὰ πρὸς τὸ ζῆν, ‘who, through lack of necessaries, supply themselves with the means of life by hard labour” (Mahaffy). The adj. is seen in P Fay r11® (A.D. 95-6) ἔχων ἐν τῇ [κ]όμῃ ἐργατικὰ κτήνη δέκα : PSI 1. 385 (A.D. 101) ὁμολογῶ πεπρακέναι σοι ὃν ἔχω ἐργατικὸν ὄνον recalls the μύλος ὀνικός of Mk 94%. ᾿Εἰργάτης is a unique formation for* épyétys through the influence of épyaCopa, cf. Boeot. ξεργοτίων (Boisacq Dect. Etym. p. 272 n.1). It persists in MGr.
Liddell-Scott-Jones — Greek-English Lexicon
ἐργάτης (ergatēs) — worker. ἐργᾰτ-ης, ου, ὁ, workman, Hermes [NT], etc.; especially one who works the soil, husbandman, [Refs 5th c.BC+]: absolutely, [Refs 5th c.BC+], etc.: also with substantive, [Refs 4th c.BC+] the country-folk, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; of animals, βοῦς ἐ. a working ox, [Refs 7th c.BC+]; also ἐ. θαλάττης, of a fisher, [Refs 4th c.AD+] a stone-mason, [Refs 2nd c.AD+] __b in the religious sense, [NT]
2. adjective hard-working, strenuous, [Refs 6th c.BC+]; opposed to ἀργός, [Refs 5th c.BC+].
II. one who practises an art, [Refs 6th c.BC+]; ἐ. δίκης, of a judge, [Refs 3rd c.BC+], practitioner in some special branch of surgery, e.g. lithotomy, [Refs 5th c.BC+]
III. doer, [NT+6th c.BC+].
IV. producer, [Refs 1st c.AD+]
V. a sort of capstan or windlass, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]
