janitor

jan·i·tor | \ ˈja-nə-tər

How to pronounce janitor (audio)

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Definition of janitor

1 : one who keeps the premises of a building (such as an apartment or office) clean, tends the heating system, and makes minor repairs

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Examples of janitor in a Sentence

got a job as the night janitor at the elementary school according to popular Christian tradition, St. Peter acts as janitor at heaven's pearly gates

Recent Examples on the Web The unionized janitors make nearly $18 an hour plus about $10 in benefits, according to Ms. Solis. — Tripp Mickle, WSJ, "Apple Commits to Paying Contractors After Some Were Told They’d Lose Work," 31 Mar. 2020 But while those plans covered part-time arena workers — from the ushers to the box office staff to the security guards to the janitors — many of them did not include the freelance broadcast crews who also work around games. — Jamie Goldberg, oregonlive, "Portland Trail Blazers arena employees, broadcast crew thankful to be compensated during NBA hiatus: ‘I think this is going to save us’," 26 Mar. 2020 Neither of the white janitors was prosecuted, but by speaking to them separately, Mr Reyna got each to accuse the other one. — The Economist, "The sleuth of death row What does it take to become a death-row detective?," 18 Dec. 2019 The night janitor and a playgirl shoplifter are trapped in a discount store with armed robbers. — Los Angeles Times, "Movies on TV this week: Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019," 22 Sep. 2019 The court system has also struggled with absences as employees quarantine themselves, from janitors to judges. — Benjamin Weiser, New York Times, "Coughing Lawyers. Uneasy Jurors. Can Courts Work Under Coronavirus?," 20 Mar. 2020 As more businesses shift to teleworking, fewer janitors are needed to clean office buildings. — Alan Gomez, USA TODAY, "Undocumented immigrants, fearful of Trump administration, could be hit hard by coronavirus," 20 Mar. 2020 In June 2001, eight children were killed when a former janitor entered an Ikeda elementary school in Osaka and began stabbing students at random. — Julia Hollingsworth, CNN, "Japanese man who killed 19 at disabled facility sentenced to death," 16 Mar. 2020 But that’s not possible for everyone: health care workers, critically, but also grocers and janitors. — Mallory Moench, SFChronicle.com, "The coronavirus threatens older workers. Some are crucial to keeping the Bay Area running," 15 Mar. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'janitor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

8 Apr 2020

Cite this Entry

“Janitor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/janitor. Accessed 8 Apr. 2020.

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