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Janus word

American

noun

a word that has opposite or nearly opposite meanings, as cleave, meaning “to adhere closely” and “to part or split.”

Etymology

Origin of Janus word

First recorded in 1935–40; see Janus ( def. ) (in the sense “Roman god of doorways”)

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.