year-over-year

adjective

: comparing or based on comparing the same time period in successive years
year-over-year growth
year-over-year increases/declines
The insurer said it paid out 16 percent less for catastrophe and storm claims on a year-over-year basis in the fourth quarter …Victor Epstein, The Des Moines Register, 21 Feb. 2014
year over year adverb
or less commonly year-over-year
The society argued in the Journal of Forestry last year that this simple accounting is reasonable in the United States, where forest inventories have increased year over year since the 1930s. Peter Fairley, IEEE Spectrum, April 2012
“Wall Street doesn't understand the seasonality of Intel's business,” says Michael Murphy, editor of the California Technology Stock Letter. “Their revenues will be down sequentially versus the first quarter, but year-over-year, growth will be 25%.” Andrew Bary, Barron's Market Week, 26 May 1997

Word History

First Known Use

1951, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of year-over-year was in 1951

Love words?

You must — there are over 200,000 words in our free online dictionary, but you are looking for one that’s only in the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary.

Start your free trial today and get unlimited access to America's largest dictionary, with:

  • More than 250,000 words that aren't in our free dictionary
  • Expanded definitions, etymologies, and usage notes
  • Advanced search features
  • Ad free!

Dictionary Entries Near year-over-year

Cite this Entry

“Year-over-year.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/year-over-year. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!