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year-over-year

American  
[yeer-oh-ver-yeer] / ˈyɪərˈoʊ vərˈyɪər /
Or year over year

adverb

Accounting, Finance.
  1. as compared with the corresponding figure 12 months earlier; involving or reckoned by such a comparison: YoY

    Exports fell 2 percent year over year in May.

    February rents for one-bedroom apartments saw a year-over-year increase of 6 percent.

  2. in each year that passes after an initial investment, the start of an observed trend, etc.; annual or annually.

    The gain from this software purchase has been our best ROI year over year.

    Over the last decade, the year-over-year trend in inflation has strongly correlated with the year-over-year trend in GDP.


Etymology

Origin of year-over-year

First recorded in 1790–1800, for an earlier sense

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Homeowners associations filed about 285,000 liens in 2025, up almost 9% year-over-year, according to real-estate tech company Benutech.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026

The guidance for bookings was also revised down to a year-over-year increase of 8% to 12%, far down from a previous 22% to 26%.

From Barron's • May 1, 2026

New listings rose 2.2% year-over-year, the second week of increases after five straight months of declines.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

The company expects year-over-year revenue growth to accelerate to around 35% in the second quarter, with a modest uptick in margins.

From Barron's • May 1, 2026

In December 2007 inflation reached 4.1% on a year-over-year basis, or higher than the upper limit of the National Bank of Poland's target range.

From The 2008 CIA World Factbook by United States. Central Intelligence Agency