Janus

American  

[jey-nuhs] / ˈdʒeɪ nəs /

noun

1. an ancient Roman god of doorways, of beginnings, and of the rising and setting of the sun, usually represented as having one head with two bearded faces back to back, looking in opposite directions.

2. Astronomy. a moon of the planet Saturn, located just outside the rings.

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Janus ¹ British  

/ ˈdʒeɪnəs /

noun

1. the Roman god of doorways, passages, and bridges. In art he is depicted with two heads facing opposite ways

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Janus ² British  

/ ˈdʒeɪnəs /

noun

1. a small inner satellite of Saturn

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Janus Cultural  

1. The Roman god of doors and gateways and hence of beginnings.

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Discover More

The month of January is named after Janus.

Janus was pictured with two faces looking in opposite directions, one young and one old. Consequently, a hypocritical person is often called “Janus-faced.”

Etymology

Origin of Janus

< Latin, special use of jānus doorway, archway, arcade

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Janus

These companies are expected to have total capex of more than $800 billion this year, up from $450 billion last year, and the figure will top $1 trillion next year, according to Janus Henderson Investors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

It’s stopping workers from hearing what unions won’t tell them: that the Supreme Court decided eight years ago this month in Janus v.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

Before those pricings, there had only been five IPO pricings in the past month, according to Renaissance Capital data, with the largest IPO being $840 million on March 19 from Janus Living.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 16, 2026

This triggers a structural imbalance called a Janus reaction, which creates internal strain within the layers.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 31, 2026

For a second, I almost wished we could’ve taken our chances with Janus.

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan