January

noun

Jan·​u·​ary ˈjan-yə-ˌwer-ē 

-ˌwe-rē

plural Januaries or Januarys

: the first month of the Gregorian calendar

Examples of January in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After the company filed for bankruptcy in January 2025 – its second filing in 11 months – all of Joann's assets were won in a February 2025 auction by retail liquidator GA Group and Joann's term lenders. —Mike Snider, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2025

And because one mansion wasn’t quite enough, Bezos bought the house across the street in January 2020, paying $5 million for the 4,785-square-foot residence. —Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 25 Apr. 2025

The wide receiver was under investigation in Louisiana for a crash in December that left a 78-year-old man dead, officials said in January. —Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 25 Apr. 2025

Cristian had been transferred into federal custody from a jail in Houston in January. —Arkansas Online, 25 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English Januarie, from Latin Januarius, 1st month of the ancient Roman year, from Janus

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for January

• accessary
• adversary
• ancillary
• arbitrary
• aviary
• axillary
• beriberi
• breviary
• budgetary
• capillary
• catenary
• cautionary

Kids Definition

January

noun

Jan·​u·​ary ˈjan-yə-ˌwer-ē 

: the first month of the year

Etymology

from Latin Januarius "first month of the year," from Janus, a Roman god

Word Origin

Among the many gods worshipped by the ancient Romans was one named Janus. He was believed to have two faces, one looking forward and one looking back. Janus was associated with doors, gates, and all beginnings. Because of that, when the Romans changed their calendar and added two months to the beginning of the year, they named the first one Januarius to honor Janus. The English January comes from Latin Januarius.