janus-faced

2 definitions found

janus-faced - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Janus-faced \Ja"nus-faced`\, a.
     Double-faced; deceitful.
     [1913 Webster]
  
     Janus-faced lock, one having duplicate faces so as to go
        upon a right or a left hand door, the key entering on
        either side indifferently. --Knight.
        [1913 Webster]

janus-faced - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  Janus-faced
      adj 1: having or concerned with polarities or contrasts; "a
             Janus-faced view of history"; "a Janus-faced policy"
      2: marked by deliberate deceptiveness especially by pretending
         one set of feelings and acting under the influence of
         another; "she was a deceitful scheming little thing"- Israel
         Zangwill; "a double-dealing double agent"; "a double-faced
         infernal traitor and schemer"- W.M.Thackeray [syn:
         ambidextrous, deceitful, double-dealing, duplicitous,
         Janus-faced, two-faced, double-faced, double-tongued]
      3: having two faces--one looking to the future and one to the
         past; "Janus the two-faced god" [syn: Janus-faced, two-   faced
         ]