ajar¹

[uh-jahr] /əˈdʒɑr/

adjective, adverb

neither entirely open nor entirely shut; partly open:

The door was ajar.

Origin

1350-1400; Middle English on char on the turn; see a-¹, char³

ajar²

[uh-jahr] /əˈdʒɑr/

adverb, adjective

in contradiction to; at variance with:

a story ajar with the facts.

Origin

1545-55; for at jar at discord; cf. jar³ (noun)

Examples from the web for ajar

Put meat under broiler, inch or two from source of heat, and leave broiler door slightly ajar.
Rotate the meringues, turn off the oven and leave the door slightly ajar.
She had spent her adulthood, if not fully closeted, then with the door only slightly ajar.
He declined to answer, leaving the door to that possibility slightly ajar.
She left the door ajar but the wind pushed the door open all the way filling the warm kitchen with a burst of cold air.
If oven is too hot, open check and raise back covers, or leave oven door ajar.
Keep a window ajar or the door open in a room where an unvented heater is in use.
To ensure adequate ventilation, have a window ajar or leave a door open to an adjoining room to provide an exchange of air.
The door was left ajar to peremptory brawn-versus-brains prejudice.
Amazon has yet to make it clear whether it will slam the door shut, or leave it ajar.

British Dictionary definitions for ajar

/əˈdʒɑː/

adjective, adverb (postpositive)

(esp of a door or window) slightly open

Word Origin

C18: altered form of obsolete on char, literally: on the turn; char, from Old English cierran to turn

/əˈdʒɑː/

adjective

(postpositive) not in harmony

Word Origin

C19: altered form of at jar at discord. See jar²

Word Origin and History for ajar

1718, perhaps from Scottish dialectal a char "slightly open," earlier on char (early 16c.), from Middle English char, from Old English cier "a turn."