Meaning: a period of 365 or 366 days, in the Gregorian calendar, based on the Earth moving in its orbit around the Sun.
Formal citation.
Learner tip: Be sure that the movement is forward, not backward in circle. Signing backward is a common error production found in ASL learners.
Informal register. Now commonly used in both formal and informal settings (language evolution).
Plural form of YEAR: years; years and years; many years.
Captured an old ASL in the film "The Preservation of American Sign Language" filmed in 1913. The sign for plural YEARS signed by George Veditz is different from today's production (different passive handshape).
Related signs: year round, YEARLY, new year, next year, last year, leap year, AGE.
Gloss: happy new year
English equivalent: Happy new year
Learn ASL: how to tell a year in calendar, including learning how to tell frequency in year terms.
