ajar

B2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /əˈdʒɑːr/ UK /əˈdʒɑː/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
slightly open or not completely shut, often of a door or window

She left the door ajar to hear the baby.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · slightly open or not... openunlatchedhalf-opencrackedgapped

Opposites

shut closed

Simplified etymology

Ajar was formed in the 16th century from a-, meaning “on,” and the obsolete word char. Char goes back to Old English cerr, meaning “a turn” or “return.”

Etymology

From Middle English a- ('on') + char ('turn'), as on char ('on the turn'), contracted to achar (14th c., 'slightly open'); into Early Modern English ajar ('partly open'), giving Modern English ajar ('slightly open').

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# ajar

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /əˈdʒɑːr/
**IPA (UK):** /əˈdʒɑː/

## Meanings
1. slightly open or not completely shut, often of a door or window

## Examples
- She left the door ajar to hear the baby.

## Synonyms
- open
- unlatched
- half-open
- cracked
- gapped

## Antonyms
- shut
- closed

## Etymology
From Middle English a- ('on') + char ('turn'), as on char ('on the turn'), contracted to achar (14th c., 'slightly open'); into Early Modern English ajar ('partly open'), giving Modern English ajar ('slightly open').

## AI Etymology
Ajar comes from Middle English a- ('on') + char ('turn'), as on char ('on the turn'), contracted to achar (14th c., 'slightly open'); into Early Modern English ajar ('partly open'), giving Modern English ajar ('slightly open'). In current use it is an adjective meaning "slightly open or not completely shut, often of a door or window". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The surface form is compositional: its joined elements remain visible in the modern word. The word's history is thus visible in its construction: the components remain interpretable even after the whole expression has settled into a conventional English meaning.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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