Janusn.

Brit.

/ˈdʒeɪnəs/, U.S.

/ˈdʒeɪnəs/

Etymology: < classical Latin Iānus.

1. (The name of) an ancient Italian deity, regarded as the doorkeeper of heaven, as guardian of doors and gates, and as presiding over the entrance upon or beginning of things; often used allusively, and in attributive and other relations.Janus was represented with a face on the front and another on the back of his head; the doors of his temple in the Roman Forum were always open in time of war, and shut in time of peace.

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the world > the supernatural > deity > classical deity > [noun] > Janus

Janus1508

bifront1598

1508 W. Dunbar Goldyn Targe (Chepman & Myllar) in Poems (1998) I. 187 Ianus, god of entree delytable.

1591 G. Fletcher Of Russe Common Wealth xix. f. 69^v Certeine idole puppets..which they fasten to the doore of their walking houses, to be as Ianusses or keepers of their house.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost xi. 129 Four faces each Had, like a double Janus .

1713 London Gaz. No. 5118/6 Janus's Gate is now shut.

1814 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Vision III. vi. 83 Composed the world to such a peace That of his temple Janus barr'd the door.

a. Designating materials with a double facing, or things having a two-way action, as Janus-beaver, Janus-cloth, Janus-cord, Janus-lock.

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the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric manufactured in specific way > [noun] > double faced

Janus-cloth1851

reversible1853

the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric manufactured in specific way > treated or processed in specific way > [noun] > felted or matted

beaver1756

ruffing1830

Janus-beaver1851

beaver cloth1858

the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric manufactured in specific way > [noun] > ribbed or corded > specific

barragan1677

prince's stuff1784

eight-shaft1840

hairline1862

hair-cord1866

grosgrain1869

Janus-cord1881

pincord1919

needlecord1959

1851 Official Descriptive & Illustr. Catal. Great Exhib. III. 486/2 Fur Janus beaver.

1851 Official Descriptive & Illustr. Catal. Great Exhib. V. 1468/2 Janus locks.

a1877 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. II. 1210/2 Janus-cloth, a fabric having each side dressed, and different colors on the respective sides. Such fabric is used for reversible garments.

1881 in A. Adburgham Shops & Shopping (1964) vi. 64 Mourning materials such as Victoria Cords, Janus Cords, Cashmere, and so on.

1882 S. F. A. Caulfeild & B. C. Saward Dict. Needlework Janus cord, the material so named is a description of Rep, composed of wool and cotton, made for women's dresses, and being a black material, is peculiarly well suited for mourning.

1960 C. W. Cunnington et al. Dict. Eng. Costume 259/2 Janus cord, a black rep of wool and cotton, the fine cord showing equally on both sides. Much used for mourning.

b. Dye Chemistry. Applied to a group of basic azo dyes that contain a quaternary ammonium group, often with safranine as the diazo component, and are capable of dyeing cotton directly; Janus green n. (also janus green, Janus green B, janus green B) either of the two basic dyes obtained by coupling diazotized safranine or dimethylsafranine with dimethylaniline, of little importance as dyes but extensively used as biological stains.

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the world > life > biology > laboratory analysis > material > [noun] > staining material

osmium tetroxide1869

picrocarmine1872

rose bengal1878

stain1880

erythrosin1884

Gram stain1884

vesuvin1885

Nile blue1888

pyronin1895

Janus green1898

counterstain1899

Nissl stain1899

Leishman stain1904

trypan blue1911

quinacrine mustard1957

the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [adjective] > yielding dye > types of dye

substantive1794

alizarin1857

Congo red1885

neutral1892

Janus1898

metachrome1901

direct1902

indigoid1908

reactive1941

thioindigoid1943

the world > matter > colour > named colours > green or greenness > green colouring matter > [noun] > pigment or dye > stains

brass-colour1797

Janus green1898

1898 Jrnl. Soc. Dyers & Colourists 14 146 The first eight patterns..were dyed with Janus Colours on Union linings.

1898 Jrnl. Soc. Dyers & Colourists 14 146 (table) Janus Black I. Janus Blue R... Janus Green G. Janus Green B.

1902 Encycl. Brit. XXVII. 559/1 Janus Colours. These comprise a small series of azo colours of a strongly basic character, which possess the unusual property of dyeing cotton in an acid bath.

1926 Stain Technol. I. 35 The use of janus green to stain mitochondria has long been known. While using it to study the mitochondria in Trichomonas buccalis it was found to stain flagella also.

1928 C. E. Mullin Acetate Silk x. 142 Some of the Janus dyes are also applicable to acetate silk, however most of them give rather dull shades.

1949 N. G. Heatley in H. W. Florey et al. Antibiotics I. iii. 118 The test organism was Welchii perfringens strain HA, the indicator was janus green.

1971 D. R. Baer in K. Venkataraman Chem. Synthetic Dyes IV. iv. 165 Derivatives of (m-aminophenyl) trimethylammonium chloride..formed part of the Janus range of colors which were of limited use on rayon, silk-wool unions, and on cotton.

1971 E. Gurr Synthetic Dyes 128 There are apparently two types of Janus green B, one from the USA and the other of European origin.

1971 E. Gurr Synthetic Dyes 129 Both types of Janus green are employed as oxidation-reduction indicators.

Compounds

C1. General attributive. Referring to the two-faced figure.

Janus face n.

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the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > equivocal quality, ambiguity > [noun] > deliberate > exploiter of

Protean1598

equivocator1599

Janus face1654

straddle-bug1872

agnostic1885

1654 R. Whitlock Ζωοτομία 549 An Experiment it is with a Janus face.

1711 Ld. Shaftesbury Characteristicks ii. i. §3 This Janus-face of writers, who with one countenance force a smile, and with another show nothing beside rage and fury.

Janus glance n.

Janus line n.

Janus word n.

C2.

Janus-faced adj.

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the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > equivocal quality, ambiguity > [adjective] > of persons, speech

ambiguous1560

meal-mouthed1570

mealy-mouthed1571

mealy1573

mealmouth1575

Janian1598

equivocant1609

bird-mouthed1610

equivocating1645

Janus-like1656

Janus-faceda1682

equivocatory1821

Samsonian1861

weasel1912

weasel-worded1923

stuttery1937

bet-hedging1971

a1682 Sir T. Browne Christian Morals (1716) iii. 77 Bivious Theorems and Janus-faced Doctrines.

1841 R. W. Emerson Friendship in Ess. 1st Ser. (London ed.) 217 A friend is Janus-faced: he looks to the past and the future.

Janus-like adj.

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