Consider the following word comparisons.

• The ancient Greek word "θήρα" ≈ "hunt, hunted".
• The ancient Greek word "θύρα" ≈ "door, entrance".
• The modern Greek word "θήρα" (THEE-ra) ≈ "hunt, hunted".
• The modern Greek word "θύρα" (THEE-ra) ≈ "door, gate".

Today, these words are pronounced in modern Greek such that they sound the same. However, in ancient Greece, there must have been some distinction in the way the vowels "η" and "υ" were pronounced.

More: An usher for the door

A word sometimes translated as "trap" is the ancient Greek word "θήρα" ≈ "hunting" or can be the result of a hunting trip.

One trick in a hunt is to use a split group of hunters where one group attempts to herd or move the prey into a target area while the other group waits for them to move into the "trap".

The same idea is present in deceptions that cause misinterpretations.

More: Matthew 11:6: Idiomatic misinterpretations that offend

• The ancient Greek word "θήρα" ≈ "beast, hunt".
• The ancient Greek word "θήρ" ≈ "beast".
• The modern Greek word "θηρίο" (thee-REE-o) ≈ "wild animal, beast".

On a ship voyage, where the ship sunk, Paul is bitten by a small "beast", or snake, on the shore.

The Russian word "зверь" (zver) ≈ "beast" and is cognate with the English word "bear".

• The Old Church Slavonic word "Зверь" ≈ "beast".
• The Old English word "bera" ≈ "bear".
• The German word "Bär" ≈ "bear".

Some think of Gladly, the cross-eyed bear, from the hymn "Gladly the cross I would bear for Jesus".

The Greek word for "beast" appears 30 times in Revelation, in 10 verses in chapter 13, which ends with the number of the beast, 666.

The word "beast" appears to refer to a person and not a wild animal. The details are not important here.

• The Latin word "bestiam" ≈ "beast" and is the source of the English word "beast".
• The Latin word "ursi" ≈ "bear" as in the constellations "Ursa Major" the "Big Bear" and "Ursa Minor" the "Little Bear".
• The Spanish word "el oso" ≈ "bear".