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常年 (cháng nián) — (adverb) all year round; year-round; (adverb) for years on end; over many years; (noun) average year (in statistics, climate, etc.)

Definition

常年 means 'all year round' or 'for years on end,' describing a steady, continuous state. Unlike 逐年的 or 连年 (year-over-year changes), 常年 emphasizes the enduring condition itself rather than year-by-year progression.

adverb
all year roundyear-roundfor years on endover many years
noun
average year (in statistics, climate, etc.)

Examples

  • 常年，。
    Tā cháng nián zài běi jīng gōng zuò, hěn shǎo huí jiā.
    He works in Beijing all year round and rarely goes home.
  • 常年，。
    Tā cháng nián liàn xí shū fǎ, shuǐ píng tí gāo hěn kuài.
    She has been practicing calligraphy for years, and her skill has improved quickly.
  • 常年。
    Zhè lǐ cháng nián de jiàng shuǐ liàng dà yuē bā bǎi háo mǐ.
    The average annual rainfall here is about 800 millimeters.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

常chángusual or long
年niányear

常 means usual or long, 年 means year; together they give year-round or average year.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
巾巾jīncloth
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng常cháng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

常 pairs 巾, a cloth, with 尚 as a sound part; the form originally referred to a lower garment.

Open 常 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
禾禾héwheat; grain
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén年nián
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

年 pairs 禾 (grain) with 人, which gives the sound. Its original meaning was harvest, and it later came to mean a year.

Open 年 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 6Frequency & Duration

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