Hymn (Noun and Verb) - Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words
Hymn (Noun and Verb)
[ A-1,Noun,G5215, humnos ]denotes a song of praise addressed to God" (Eng., "hymn"), Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16, in each of which the punctuation should probably be changed; in the former "speaking to one another" goes with the end of Ephesians 5:18, and should be followed by a semicolon; similarly in Colossians 3:16, the first part of the verse should end with the words "admonishing one another," where a semicolon should be placed.
Note: The psalmos denoted that which had a musical accompaniment; the ode (Eng., "ode") was the generic term for a song; hence the accompanying adjective "spiritual."
[ B-1,Verb,G5214, humneo ]
akin to A, is used
(a) transitively, Matthew 26:30; Mark 14:26, where the "hymn" was that part of the Hallel consisting of Psalms 113-118;
(b) intransitively, where the verb itself is rendered "to sing praises" or "praise," Acts 16:25; Hebrews 2:12. The Psalms are called, in general, "hymns," by Philo; Josephus calls them "songs and hymns."