Japanese word

前年

Pronunciation

Romajizennen

Meaning

  • nounlast year

Example

前年より売上が増えました。zen nen yo ri uriage ga fu e ma shi ta

Sales increased compared with last year.

Illustration for 前年 (last year)

More examples

前年の記録を更新しました。zen nen no ki roku o kō shin shi ma shi ta

We broke the record from the previous year.

Core concept

It identifies the year immediately before a specified year, often the year before the present one.

Common phrases

  • 前年と比べてzen nen to kura be te

    compared with the previous year

  • 前年比zen nen hi

    year-over-year

Similar words

去年kyonen: The year immediately before the present year, used mainly in everyday speech.
昨年sakunen: The year immediately before the present year, used mainly in formal speech and writing.

Definition in Japanese

基準となる時点の一つ前の年。ki jun to na ru ji ten no hito tsu mae no toshi

Word origin

Combines 前 (zen, "before") and 年 (nen, "year"), forming a Sino-Japanese compound for the year before a reference point.

Usage tips

  • In Japanese business reports, 前年 (zennen) often appears in year-on-year comparisons, making it more formal than the everyday English phrase last year.

Other meanings

  • the previous yearnoun

Word lists with this word