一年一度 (yī nián yī dù) — once a year, annually

Definition

A set phrase meaning something happens once every year. The degree word 一度 (literally 'one degree/time') emphasizes the regularity of the event.

noun

once a yearannually

，一年一度。
Měi nián qiū tiān, wǒ men gōng sī dōu huì jǔ xíng yī nián yī dù de tuán jiàn huó dòng.
Every autumn, our company holds an annual team-building event.
一年一度，。
Zhè shì běi jīng yī nián yī dù de miào huì, xī yǐn le hěn duō yóu kè.
This is Beijing's annual temple fair, which attracts many tourists.
一年一度。
yī nián yī dù De bì yè diǎn lǐ shì dà xué zuì zhòng yào de huó dòng zhī yī.
The annual graduation ceremony is one of the most important events at the university.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

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.