an·nu·al
ˈan-yə(-wə)l 
-yü-əl
1
: covering the period of a year
annual rainfall
annual income
2
: occurring or happening every year or once a year : yearly
an annual reunion
an annual physical checkup
3
: completing the life cycle in one growing season or single year
annual plants
1
: an event that occurs yearly
2
: a publication appearing yearly
the high-school annual
3
: something that lasts one year or season
specifically
: a plant that completes its life cycle in one growing season
Examples of annual in a Sentence
Adjective
The annual meeting is in July.
The company's earnings for last year are published in the annual report.
We had more snow this year than the average annual amount.
The company charges an annual fee of $45.
Noun
We planted some annuals in front of the house.
Recent Examples on the Web
Patrick Frater, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
In an earlier bid to amplify Black voices in Toronto, Anderson and James launched the Black Academy, which started out with the annual B.L.A.C.K. Ball party at the Toronto Film Festival.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024
Afterwards, Phish will embark on a summer tour July 19-21 in Mansfield, Ma., with their annual Labor Day Weekend visit to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce, Co., on tap from Aug. 29-Sept. 1.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 11 Apr. 2024
Now, Frette has collaborated with the American fashion designer Thom Browne on a 10-piece collection that will be revealed during a performance at this year’s Salone del Mobile, the annual furniture and design fair held in Milan.
—Devorah Lev-Tov Kin Woo Ella Riley-Adams Jameson Montgomery Kurt Soller Megan O’Sullivan, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
That’s up considerably from February’s 3.2% rate and marks the highest annual gain in the past six months.
—Krystal Hur, CNN, 11 Apr. 2024
New Jersey, the state with the highest taxes in the Self Financial report, lost the most residents to other states in 2023, according to the annual National Movers Study from United Van Lines.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 11 Apr. 2024
The Lyrids meteor shower is an annual meteor shower that occurs in April.
—The Arizona Republic, 11 Apr. 2024
The city pension system is estimated to have a $20 million to $30 million annual deficit over 20 years.
—Sharon Coolidge, The Enquirer, 11 Apr. 2024
Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 12 Apr. 2024
The Garden Boutique area will feature vegetable plants, annuals and miscellaneous garden items.
—Journal Sentinel, 8 Apr. 2024
The heat-loving annuals have ferny, strongly scented leaves.
—Steve Bender, Southern Living, 6 Apr. 2024
Her Oscar aside, for playing Anita in Steven Spielberg's West Side Story, DeBose earned an Emmy Award nomination for the 75th annual Tony Awards in 2022.
—Dave Quinn, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
The 2024 Tony Awards, the 77th annual in the show's history, will air live from the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City on Sunday, June 16 (8 p.m. ET) on CBS and Paramount+.
—Dave Quinn, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
Some herbs may benefit from planting after the last frost date in spring or growing as annuals during the cooler months.
—The Arizona Republic, 21 Mar. 2024
For any home gardeners who spend their weekends toiling in the backyard to keep their annuals alive and shrubbery in good form, the appeal of a botanical garden is obvious.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024
North of Zone 9, bougainvillea is often treated as a summer annual and displayed in hanging baskets or patio containers.
—Marissa Wu, Southern Living, 12 Mar. 2024
Adjective
The announcement was made Wednesday at the annual CinemaCon 2024 exhibition conference in Las Vegas.
—Patrick Frater, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
In an earlier bid to amplify Black voices in Toronto, Anderson and James launched the Black Academy, which started out with the annual B.L.A.C.K. Ball party at the Toronto Film Festival.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024
Afterwards, Phish will embark on a summer tour July 19-21 in Mansfield, Ma., with their annual Labor Day Weekend visit to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce, Co., on tap from Aug. 29-Sept. 1.
—Spin Staff, SPIN, 11 Apr. 2024
Now, Frette has collaborated with the American fashion designer Thom Browne on a 10-piece collection that will be revealed during a performance at this year’s Salone del Mobile, the annual furniture and design fair held in Milan.
—Devorah Lev-Tov Kin Woo Ella Riley-Adams Jameson Montgomery Kurt Soller Megan O’Sullivan, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2024
That’s up considerably from February’s 3.2% rate and marks the highest annual gain in the past six months.
—Krystal Hur, CNN, 11 Apr. 2024
New Jersey, the state with the highest taxes in the Self Financial report, lost the most residents to other states in 2023, according to the annual National Movers Study from United Van Lines.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 11 Apr. 2024
The Lyrids meteor shower is an annual meteor shower that occurs in April.
—The Arizona Republic, 11 Apr. 2024
The city pension system is estimated to have a $20 million to $30 million annual deficit over 20 years.
—Sharon Coolidge, The Enquirer, 11 Apr. 2024
Noun
Most vigorous annuals will recover in a week or so.
—Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 12 Apr. 2024
The Garden Boutique area will feature vegetable plants, annuals and miscellaneous garden items.
—Journal Sentinel, 8 Apr. 2024
The heat-loving annuals have ferny, strongly scented leaves.
—Steve Bender, Southern Living, 6 Apr. 2024
Her Oscar aside, for playing Anita in Steven Spielberg's West Side Story, DeBose earned an Emmy Award nomination for the 75th annual Tony Awards in 2022.
—Dave Quinn, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
The 2024 Tony Awards, the 77th annual in the show's history, will air live from the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City on Sunday, June 16 (8 p.m. ET) on CBS and Paramount+.
—Dave Quinn, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
Some herbs may benefit from planting after the last frost date in spring or growing as annuals during the cooler months.
—The Arizona Republic, 21 Mar. 2024
For any home gardeners who spend their weekends toiling in the backyard to keep their annuals alive and shrubbery in good form, the appeal of a botanical garden is obvious.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024
North of Zone 9, bougainvillea is often treated as a summer annual and displayed in hanging baskets or patio containers.
—Marissa Wu, Southern Living, 12 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'annual.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to annual
Dictionary Entries Near annual
Cite this Entry
“Annual.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/annual. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
annual
1 of 2 adjective
an·nu·al
ˈan-y(ə-w)əl
1
: covering the period of a year
annual rainfall
2
: occurring or performed once a year : yearly
an annual meeting
3
: completing the life cycle in one growing season or single year
annual plants
annually
adverb
-ē
annual
2 of 2 noun1
: a publication appearing yearly
2
: an annual plant
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English annual "for a year," from early French annuel and Latin annualis (both, same meaning), derived from Latin annus "year"
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