Cephas

C3E1P3H4A1S1
/ˈsi.fəs/

proper noun

The apostle Peter, using the name given to him by Jesus.

“And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.”

OriginLatin Cēphās ← Ancient Greek Κηφᾶς ← Aramaic כֵּיפָא →
UncommonScrabble 13
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. The apostle Peter, using the name given to him by Jesus.

    And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.

  2. A male given name from Aramaic of biblical origin.

Origin

  1. Classical Syriacܟܐܦܐ“stone, rock”
  2. Aramaicכֵּיפָא
  3. Ancient GreekΚηφᾶς
  4. LatinCēphās
  5. EnglishCephas

Borrowed from Latin Cēphās, from Ancient Greek Κηφᾶς (Kēphâs), from Aramaic כֵּיפָא/Classical Syriac ܟܐܦܐ (kēp̄ā, “stone, rock”).

More words from Latin, Ancient Greek, Aramaic

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic شَمْعُون الصَّفَا
  • شَمْعُون الصَّفَا (šamʕūn aṣ-ṣafā)apostle Peter
Basque Kepa
  • Kepamale given name
Catalan Cefes
  • Cefesmale given name
Chinese Cantonese 磯法 /矶法, 刻法
  • 磯法 /矶法 (gei¹ faat³)apostle Peter
  • 刻法 (hak¹ faat³)apostle Peter
Chinese Mandarin 磯法 /矶法, 刻法
  • 磯法 /矶法 (Jīfǎ)apostle Peter
  • 刻法 (Kèfǎ)apostle Peter
Czech Kéfas
  • Kéfasmale given name
Finnish Keefas
  • Keefasapostle Peter
French Céphas, Céphas
  • Céphasapostle Peter
  • Céphasmale given name
German Kephas
  • Kephasmale given name
Hungarian Kéfás
  • Kéfásapostle Peter
Italian Cefa
  • Cefamale given name
Japanese シファス
  • シファス (shifasu)male given name
Latvian Kēfas
  • Kēfasmale given name
Polish Kefas, Kefas
  • Kefasapostle Peter
  • Kefasmale given name
Portuguese Cefas, Cefas
  • Cefasapostle Peter
  • Cefasmale given name
Romanian Chifa
  • Chifamale given name
Russian Ки́фа, Ки́фа
  • Ки́фа (Kífa)apostle Peter
  • Ки́фа (Kífa)male given name
Spanish Cefas
  • Cefasapostle Peter
Swedish Kefas
  • Kefasapostle Peter

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Pesachspeach
Cite this entry
APA

Cephas. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Cephas

MLA

“Cephas.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Cephas. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Cephas,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Cephas.

Source: Cephas on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.