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
Paxton, who signed a one-year, $7-million deal with the Dodgers in January, threw his curve 19.5% of the time last season, holding hitters to a .231 average (15 for 65) and 23 strikeouts in at-bats ending with the pitch.
—
Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
Singapore started its event strategy this quarter with six concerts from the British rock band Coldplay in January, followed by six March concerts by Taylor Swift.
—Lionel Lim, Fortune Asia, 23 May 2024
He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte in January.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 23 May 2024
In January 2020, Anderson secretly wed movie producer Jon Peters — only for the pair to announce their split two weeks later and confirm they were never legally married.
—Andrea Wurzburger, Peoplemag, 23 May 2024
He was initially arrested in January 2024 in Virginia, and has been in federal custody since then.
—Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 23 May 2024
In January 2022, a neighbor noticed Bill Levy didn’t pick up his newspaper or roll in his trash bins at his California townhouse.
—Daniella Segura, Sacramento Bee, 23 May 2024
Schiller, who has been overseeing the iPhone app store since its inception in 2008, made the admission during occasionally sheepish testimony about the new payment options that so far have been shunned by all but a few dozen apps since their introduction in January.
—Michael Liedtke, Fortune, 23 May 2024
That trip is available in both January and March 2026.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 23 May 2024
Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
Singapore started its event strategy this quarter with six concerts from the British rock band Coldplay in January, followed by six March concerts by Taylor Swift.
—Lionel Lim, Fortune Asia, 23 May 2024
He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte in January.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 23 May 2024
In January 2020, Anderson secretly wed movie producer Jon Peters — only for the pair to announce their split two weeks later and confirm they were never legally married.
—Andrea Wurzburger, Peoplemag, 23 May 2024
He was initially arrested in January 2024 in Virginia, and has been in federal custody since then.
—Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 23 May 2024
In January 2022, a neighbor noticed Bill Levy didn’t pick up his newspaper or roll in his trash bins at his California townhouse.
—Daniella Segura, Sacramento Bee, 23 May 2024
Schiller, who has been overseeing the iPhone app store since its inception in 2008, made the admission during occasionally sheepish testimony about the new payment options that so far have been shunned by all but a few dozen apps since their introduction in January.
—Michael Liedtke, Fortune, 23 May 2024
That trip is available in both January and March 2026.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 23 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'January.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near January
Cite this Entry
“January.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/January. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids 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.
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