Janus-faced
Americanadjective
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having two faces, one looking forward, one looking backward, as the Roman deity Janus.
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having two contrasting aspects, as the alternation of mood in a capricious person.
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two-faced; deceitful.
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aware of or concerned with polarities; seeing different and contrasting aspects.
a Janus-faced view of history.
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having or containing contrasting characteristics.
a Janus-faced policy.
adjective
Etymology
Origin of Janus-faced
First recorded in 1675–85; Janus ( def. ) + faced ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Every renaissance is Janus-faced, he notes, looking “backward and forward at the same time.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2025
Even if some of Iran’s leaders wanted to believe him, which of his many Janus-faced statements—especially regarding their future hold on power—should they believe?
From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2025
“The State cannot be allowed to take a Janus-faced position — wholeheartedly proffering David’s allegations of abuse on the State’s criminal proceedings, while disavowing or discrediting those same allegations in David’s civil action,” they wrote.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 12, 2024
He was one of America's most Janus-faced leaders, a protean figure who could sincerely shift from the pragmatic reformer to the vengeful autocrat without any apparent qualms.
From Salon ● Mar. 18, 2023
Our understanding of facts is thus Janus-faced: at one moment we regard them as things, reality itself; at the next they are true beliefs, statements about reality.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
