janitor English · revision 1323

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈd͡ʒænɪtə/ ''(UK)''; /ˈd͡ʒænɪtɚ/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la|iānitor|t=doorkeeper]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) from ''iānua'' “door”,^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) from ''iānus'' “archway, covered passage”.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) It is related to [[January]] and [[Janus]], the god of gates and beginnings.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ An usher in a school (1584).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The word was adopted from Latin records, first in Scots,^(AHD) and soon meant a doorkeeper or porter (about 1630).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) In Scots use a janitor was also a minor school official whose duties included upkeep,^(AHD) and from 1708 the word meant the caretaker of a building who looks after its cleaning and heating,^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) now the main sense.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1584 – a school usher.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * about 1630 – a doorkeeper.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1708 – the caretaker of a building.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1806 – ''janitress''.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A person employed to clean and maintain a building; a [[caretaker]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(archaic)'' A doorkeeper; a [[doorman]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[janitorial]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[Janus]]

+ * [[January]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}