jan·i·tor
 janitor
|
|
- pronunciation:
- jae
nih
t
r
- features:
- Word History, Word Explorer
| part of speech: |
noun |
| definition: |
A janitor is a person whose job is to clean and take care of a building.
The janitor at our school is nice. We sometimes see him cleaning or fixing something, and he always says hello.
- synonyms:
- custodian
- similar words:
- super
|
|
|
| derivation: |
janitorial (adj.) |
There were
janitors in ancient Rome, but the word "janitor" meant something different then. It meant "doorkeeper." When it entered the English language in the 1500s, "janitor" still meant "doorkeeper.". Its meaning changed over the next 200 years, and by the 1700s was a word for the caretaker of a building.