Quick Definition
μήτηρ, μητρός, ἡ n.f. a mother
Strong's Definition
apparently a primary word; a "mother" (literally or figuratively, immediate or remote)
KJV Usage: mother
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament
noun, f. | -τρός | ἀμήτωρ · μήτρα · μητρολῴας
10.16 · Kinship Terms · Kinship Relations Involving Successive Generations
mother one’s biological or adoptive female parent μήτηρ[a] is sometimes used figuratively to refer to persons who are not biological parents but who are in some respects closely associated with the reference person: μήτηρ μου καὶ ἀδελφοί μου οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ ἀκούοντες καὶ ποιοῦντες ‘my mother and my brothers are those who hear God’s word and act accordingly’ LUK 8:21. For a discussion of LUK 8:21, see 10.49.
MAT 1:18 · MAT 2:11 · MAT 2:13 · MAT 2:14 · MAT 2:20 · MAT 2:21 · MAT 10:35 · MAT 10:37 · MAT 12:46 · MAT 12:47 · MAT 12:48 · MAT 12:49 · MAT 12:50 · MAT 13:55 · MAT 14:8 · MAT 14:11 · MAT 15:4 · MAT 15:4 · MAT 15:5 · MAT 19:5 · MAT 19:12 · MAT 19:19 · MAT 19:29 · MAT 20:20 · MAT 27:56 · MAT 27:56 · MRK 3:31 · MRK 3:32 · MRK 3:33 · MRK 3:34 · MRK 3:35 · MRK 5:40 · MRK 6:24 · MRK 6:28 · MRK 7:10 · MRK 7:10 · MRK 7:11 · MRK 7:12 · MRK 10:7 · MRK 10:19 · MRK 10:29 · MRK 10:30 · MRK 15:40 · LUK 1:15 · LUK 1:43 · LUK 1:60 · LUK 2:33 · LUK 2:34 · LUK 2:48 · LUK 2:51 · LUK 7:12 · LUK 7:15 · LUK 8:19 · LUK 8:20 · LUK 8:21 · LUK 8:51 · LUK 12:53 · LUK 12:53 · LUK 14:26 · LUK 18:20 · JHN 2:1 · JHN 2:3 · JHN 2:5 · JHN 2:12 · JHN 3:4 · JHN 6:42 · JHN 19:25 · JHN 19:25 · JHN 19:26 · JHN 19:26 · JHN 19:27 · ACT 1:14 · ACT 3:2 · ACT 12:12 · ACT 14:8 · ROM 16:13 · GAL 1:15 · EPH 5:31 · EPH 6:2 · 1TI 5:2 · 2TI 1:5
1 πατήρ and μήτηρ in this figurative sense do not differ essentially in meaning. The choice of either πατήρ or μήτηρ depends entirely upon the contextual referent which serves as the original example or archetype.
UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament © United Bible Societies, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Thayer's Greek Lexicon
μήτηρ, gen. μητρός, dat. μητρί, ace. μητέρα, ἧ, [fr. Hom. down; fr. Skr. ma ‘to measure’; but whether denoting the ‘ moulder,’ or the ‘ manager’ is debated; ef. Vaniéek p- 657; Curtius § 472; (cf. μέτρον)], Hebr. O8, a mother; prop.: Mt. i. 18; ii. 11, and often; trop. of that which is like a mother: Mt. xii. 49 sq.; Mk. iii. 35; Jn. xix. 27; Ro. xvi. 13, cf. 1 Tim. v. 2; a city is called 9 μήτηρ τῶν πορνῶν, that produces and harbors the harlots. Rev. xvii. 5; of a city where races of men [i. e. Christians] originated, Gal. iv. 26 [here G T Tr WH om. L br. πάντων (on the origin of which ef. Bp. Lghtft. ad loc.)1.
Mounce Concise Greek Dictionary
μήτηρ mētēr 83x
a mother, Mt. 1:18; 12:49, 50, et al. freq.; a parent city, Gal. 4:26; Rev. 17:5
Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon
μήτηρ, gen., μητρός, ἡ,
[in LXX chiefly for אֵם;]
mother: Mt 1:18 2:11, al.; fig., of one who takes the place of a mother, ἰδοὺ, ἡ μ. μου, Mt 12:49 (cf. Mt 12:50, Mk 3:35, Jo 19:27, Ro 16:13, I Ti 5:2); of a city, ἥτις ἐσὶν μ. ἡμῶν, Ga 4:26; symbolically of Babylon, ἡ μ. τ. πορνῶν, Re 17:5.
Moulton & Milligan — Vocabulary of the Greek NT
μήτηρ. It is not necessary to illustrate at length this common noun, but one or two points may be noted. Thus for its loose use (cf. Rom 161% and see s.vv. ἀδελφός, πατήρ, τέκνον) we may cite P Oxy X. 1296 (iii/A.D.) where the writer greets each of two women as ‘‘ mother ”—® ἀσπάζομαι τὴν μητέραν (for the form cf. Moulton Pro/eg. p. 49) pov Ταμιέαν, and 15 τὴν μητέραν μου Τιμπεσοῦρί(ιν) : cf. 7. XIV. 1678 (iii/A.D.), where the same designation is applied to at least three persons. Similarly in P Giss I. 78! (ii/A.p.) ᾿Αλινὴ Τετῆτι τῆι μητρὶ χαίρειν, the word is used as the pet-name of an old servant. Μήτηρ is used fey as voc. in BGU III. 814 (iii/a.p.). For the adj. μητρικός cf. P Ryl IL. 1538% (A.p. 138-61) ὃ μητρικός pov δοῦλος Μύρων, “my mother’s slave Myron.” In MGr it has developed the sense ‘‘motherly.”’ The MGr noun μητέρα shows the acc. sing. treated as nom. on the analogy of such a noun as
Liddell-Scott-Jones — Greek-English Lexicon
μήτηρ (mētēr) — mother. μήτηρ, Doric dialect μάτηρ, ἡ: though paroxytone in nominative, it follows πατήρ in the accent of the indirect cases, genitive μητερος contraction μητρός, dative μητέρι, μητρί, both forms being found in [Refs 8th c.BC+], but the longer forms rarely in Trag. exc. Lyric poetry, as ματέρος [Refs 5th c.BC+]; μητέρος in iambics, [Refs 5th c.BC+]:—mother, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; of animals, dam,[Refs 8th c.BC+]; of a mother-bird, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; of queen bees, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; ἀπὸ ματρὸς φίλας, ἐκ ματρός, from one's mother's womb, [Refs 5th c.BC+]: in plural, mother and grandmother, [Refs 1st c.AD+]; as an address to elderly women, ὦ μῆτερ [Refs 3rd c.BC+], = Mater Patriae, [Refs 2nd c.AD+]; μ. τῶν ἀηττήτων στρατοπέδων, = Mater invictorum castrorum, of Julia Domna, [Refs 3rd c.AD+]
2. of lands, μ. μήλων, θηρῶν, mother of flocks, of game, [Refs 8th c.BC+]; frequently of Earth, γῆ πάντων μ. [Refs 8th c.BC+]; ἡ Μήτηρ, ={Δημήτηρ}, τῇ Μητρὶ καὶ τῇ Κούρῃ ὁρτὴν ἄγουσι [Refs 5th c.BC+]; also of Rhea, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; as title of Isis, [Refs 3rd c.BC+]
3. frequently of one's native land, μᾶτερ ἐμά, Θήβα [Refs 5th c.BC+]; and so, like{μητρόπολις}, [Refs 5th c.BC+]
II. poetry, the origin or source of events, μ. ἀέθλων, of Olympia, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; of night, as the mother of day, [Refs 4th c.BC+]; the grape of wine, [Refs 5th c.BC+]; Aphrodite of the Loves, [Refs]; φάτις ὦ μᾶτερ αἰσχύνας ἐμᾶς, of a rumour, [Refs 5th c.BC+]: also in Prose, γεωργίαν τῶν ἄλλων τεχνῶν μητέρα [Refs 5th c.BC+]; πολιτειῶν μητέρες δύο (i.e. μοναρχία and δημοκρατία) [Refs 5th c.BC+]. (Cf. Latin mater, O[Refs 5th c.BC+] módor, etc.)