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Expressing "previous years" with 往年 (wǎngnián)
Structure
与 + 往年 + Comparison Phrase
Explanation
往年 (wǎngnián) means "previous years" or "in years past" and is used to refer to what has happened in prior years as a basis for comparison. It commonly appears in phrases like 与往年一样 (the same as in previous years) or 与往年相比 (compared to previous years).
Examples
今年的气温比往年高了不少。
Jīnnián de qìwēn bǐ wǎngnián gāo le bù shǎo.
This year's temperature is quite a bit higher than in previous years.
与往年相比，今年的游客数量明显增加了。
Yǔ wǎngnián xiāngbǐ, jīnnián de yóukè shùliàng míngxiǎn zēngjiā le.
Compared with previous years, the number of tourists this year has increased significantly.
往年这个时候早就下雪了。
Wǎngnián zhège shíhou zǎo jiù xià xuě le.
In previous years, it would have already been snowing by this time.
今年的气温比往年高了不少。
Jīnnián de qìwēn bǐ wǎngnián gāo le bùshǎo.
This year's temperature is quite a bit higher than in previous years.
与往年相比，今年的游客数量明显增加了。
Yǔ wǎngnián xiāngbǐ, jīnnián de yóukè shùliàng míngxiǎn zēngjiā le.
Compared with previous years, the number of tourists this year has increased significantly.
往年这个时候早就下雪了。
Wǎngnián zhège shíhòu zǎo jiù xià xuě le.
In previous years, it would have already snowed by this time.