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

The new Northwestern Mutual findings, released in April, draw from surveys of 4,375 adults in January. —Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 21 June 2026

January 20 – February 18 Where can truth and care meet today? —Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 20 June 2026

The 54-year-old, who had only been in charge since January, has since been replaced with experienced national team manager – and World Cup mainstay – Hervé Renard. —Ben Church, CNN Money, 20 June 2026

The promotion also snipped bantamweight veteran Cameron Smotherman, who is unfortunately best known for his viral collapse at a weigh-in in January. —Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 20 June 2026

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

• askari
• astbury
• azeri
• banbury
• barberry
• blackberry
• blueberry
• canary
• cranberry
• dentary
• dewberry
• dogberry

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.