When learning French, you quickly encounter an and année as the main words for 'year.' But what’s the difference? And are there other ways to say it? The answer is a big oui!

Choosing the right word for 'year' can make a huge difference in sounding like a native speaker. It’s not just about an versus année; there are specific terms for academic years, vintages, and more.

Ready to level up your vocabulary? Let's explore nine different ways to say 'year' in French and learn the perfect context for each one!

The standard 'year' (for counting) – an

The standard word for “year” when counting is an.

An is the most basic and common word for “year” in French, but its use is specific. It is used when you are counting years or specifying a duration with a number.

The fundamental rule is to use an after a cardinal number (like un, deux, trois...) or an indefinite number (like plusieurs). Think of an as a simple unit of time, a block on the calendar.

The most frequent use of an is for stating age. You will almost always use an or ans (plural) after the number when telling someone how old you or someone else is. For example, J'ai trente ans (I am thirty years old).

An is also the correct choice for expressing precise durations, especially with time markers like il y a (ago), dans (in), or pendant (for/during). For example: Il y a cinq ans (Five years ago).

The word changes form based on the number. Use an for the number one (un an), and ans for all other numbers, including zero (zéro ans). The 's' in ans is silent unless it forms a liaison with a following vowel, like in dix ans (deez ahn).

Crucially, an is NOT used to describe the content or duration of a whole year. For that, you use its counterpart, année. Using an emphasizes the year as a single point or a numerical unit, not the experience within it.

💡 * Mon fils a six ans.

• J'ai vécu à Paris pendant dix ans.
• Il est arrivé en France il y a trois ans.
• Le projet durera un an.
• Tous les deux ans, nous allons en Italie.

The 'year' (as a duration) – année

The “year” (as a duration) – année

In French, there are two words for 'year': an and année. The key difference is that année is used to emphasize the duration of the year, focusing on the events and experiences that happen within that entire span of time.

You almost always use année when 'year' is described by an adjective. This is a great rule of thumb. For example, you say l'année prochaine (next year), l'année dernière (last year), or une bonne année (a good year).

Conversely, an is treated as a simple unit of time, like a point on a calendar. It's most commonly used with numbers to state age or count years. For instance, Il a vingt ans (He is 20 years old), not vingt années. Think of an as a counter and année as a container for experiences.

Année is fixed in many common expressions that refer to the whole period. For example, the New Year's greeting is always « Bonne année ! », and the academic year is l'année scolaire.

To summarize, if you are talking about the content, quality, or entire span of a year, use année. If you are simply counting years as units, use an.

💡 * Je vous souhaite une très bonne année ! (I wish you a very good year!)

• L'année dernière, j'ai beaucoup voyagé. (Last year, I traveled a lot.)
• Elle a passé toute l'année à travailler sur ce projet. (She spent the whole year working on this project.)
• C'était une année difficile mais enrichissante. (It was a difficult but enriching year.)

The 'school year' – année scolaire

When you need to talk specifically about the academic or school year in French, the precise term you'll use is année scolaire.

The term breaks down logically: année means 'year,' and scolaire is the adjective meaning 'of school' or 'academic.' Together, they form the literal translation 'school year.'

Using année scolaire is important for clarity. It distinguishes the academic calendar from a standard calendar year (année civile). If you're discussing classes, exams, or school holidays, this is the phrase to use.

In France, the année scolaire typically runs from early September to late June or early July. This period is punctuated by several short holiday breaks.

The start of the année scolaire is a significant cultural event known as la rentrée (the return). This term refers to the nationwide return to school and work after the long summer vacation.

💡 * L'année scolaire commence début septembre en France.

• J'ai eu de très bonnes notes pendant toute l'année scolaire.
• Quand est-ce que l'année scolaire se termine ?
• Il a beaucoup changé au cours de la dernière année scolaire.

The 'fiscal year' – exercice (comptable)

In French business and accounting, the direct equivalent for "fiscal year" is l'exercice comptable, which is often shortened to simply l'exercice.

This term defines the 12-month period a company uses for its financial statements, tax reporting, and budgeting. It's a cornerstone of financial vocabulary in French-speaking business environments.

The word exercice on its own can mean "exercise" or "drill" (e.g., un exercice de grammaire). The addition of comptable (accounting) or a clear business context is what specifies its meaning as "fiscal year."

A key point is that an exercice comptable doesn't have to follow the calendar year. A company can define its own period. Common phrases include clôturer l'exercice (to close the fiscal year) and l'exercice en cours (the current fiscal year).

💡 * L'entreprise a réalisé un bénéfice record au cours du dernier exercice. (The company achieved a record profit during the last fiscal year.)

• Notre exercice comptable commence le 1er avril et se termine le 31 mars. (Our fiscal year begins on April 1st and ends on March 31st.)
• Les comptes annuels doivent être déposés dans les mois qui suivent la clôture de l'exercice. (The annual accounts must be filed in the months following the close of the fiscal year.)
• Le rapport financier pour l'exercice 2024 sera bientôt disponible. (The financial report for the 2024 fiscal year will be available soon.)

The 'calendar year' – année civile

The “calendar year” – année civile

Année civile translates to “civil year” and refers to the official calendar year, which always runs from January 1st to December 31st.

This is a formal term used primarily in administrative, legal, and financial contexts. It provides precision and avoids confusion with other types of years, such as an année scolaire (school year) or an année fiscale (fiscal year).

The key purpose of année civile is to specify a fixed and universally recognized period. While année can refer to any 12-month period, année civile specifically means the one starting on January 1st.

You are most likely to encounter this term when dealing with taxes, employment contracts, official reports, or legal documents in France, where specifying the exact period is crucial.

💡 * La déclaration de revenus doit être complétée pour l'année civile précédente.

• Le budget est alloué pour toute l'année civile 2024.
• Ce rapport couvre les données recueillies au cours de la dernière année civile.
• Le contrat est valable pour une année civile, du 1er janvier au 31 décembre.

The 'graduating class year' – promotion

While in English 'promotion' typically refers to a raise at work or a special sale, in a French academic context, promotion means something entirely different. It refers to a specific year's graduating class or cohort.

A promotion is the collective term for all students who complete their studies and graduate from a particular institution (like a university or a military academy) in the same year. You will often see it paired with a year, for example, la promotion 2025.

This concept is especially significant in France's prestigious grandes écoles (elite higher education institutions). Belonging to a specific promotion is a major part of one's identity and provides a powerful lifelong professional and social network. These classes are often given official names, such as the Promotion Voltaire of the ENA, which included a future French president.

Essentially, when a French person mentions their promotion, they are signaling their academic lineage and the specific group of peers with whom they graduated. It's a term that carries more weight than simply saying 'the class of '23,' as it implies a shared journey and a lasting bond.

💡 * Je suis de la promotion 2021 de la Sorbonne. (I'm from the Sorbonne's graduating class of 2021.)

• Tous les membres de sa promotion ont trouvé un emploi rapidement. (All the members of his graduating class found a job quickly.)
• La prochaine réunion des anciens de la promotion 1999 est samedi. (The next reunion for the alumni of the class of 1999 is Saturday.)
• Quelle est votre année de promotion ? (What year was your graduating class?)

The 'vintage year' (for wine) – millésime

In the world of wine, the French word millésime refers specifically to the vintage, or the year in which the grapes were harvested. It's a crucial term for wine enthusiasts and is much more specific than the general word for year, année.

You will frequently see millésime on wine labels to indicate the vintage. It's used to discuss the quality of a wine from a particular year, as weather conditions greatly affect the grapes. For example, a grand millésime refers to an excellent vintage year.

Grammatically, millésime is a masculine noun. Therefore, you always use masculine articles and adjectives with it, such as un millésime or le millésime.

💡 * Quel est le millésime de ce vin ? (What is the vintage of this wine?)

• 2009 a été un excellent millésime pour le Bordeaux. (2009 was an excellent vintage for Bordeaux.)
• Je recherche une bouteille du millésime 1990. (I am looking for a bottle from the 1990 vintage.)

The 'New Year' – le Nouvel An

The most common and direct way to say 'The New Year' in French is le Nouvel An. It refers specifically to the holiday and the transition from one year to the next.

Grammatically, the adjective nouveau (new) becomes nouvel before a masculine noun that starts with a vowel or a silent 'h', like an (year). This change is made for euphonic reasons, making the phrase easier to pronounce.

Le Nouvel An encompasses the celebration period, which includes New Year's Eve, known as la Saint-Sylvestre (December 31st), and New Year's Day, le Jour de l'An (January 1st).

When wishing someone a happy new year, the standard greeting is simply « Bonne année ! ». You might also hear « Meilleurs vœux ! » (Best wishes!).

💡 * Que fais-tu pour le Nouvel An cette année ? (What are you doing for the New Year this year?)

• Nous fêtons le Nouvel An en famille. (We celebrate the New Year with family.)
• Joyeux Noël et bonne année ! (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!)
• Le défilé du Nouvel An est une tradition dans cette ville. (The New Year's parade is a tradition in this city.)

1. The 'light-year' – année-lumière

The French term for 'light-year' is a direct and logical translation: année-lumière. It's a compound noun formed from année (year) and lumière (light). It's crucial to remember that, just like in English, an année-lumière is a unit of distance, not time. It represents the distance light travels in one Earth year.

In French, the gender of a compound noun is typically determined by the first noun. Since année is a feminine noun, année-lumière is also feminine. Therefore, you would say une année-lumière (a light-year) or l'année-lumière (the light-year).

To make année-lumière plural, you only add an 's' to the first word, année. The second part, lumière, remains unchanged. The plural form is des années-lumière.

The term année-lumière is used almost exclusively in scientific contexts, particularly in astronomy, to describe the vast distances between stars, galaxies, and other celestial objects. You will encounter it in documentaries, scientific articles, and science fiction.

💡 * Une année-lumière représente une distance d'environ 9 461 milliards de kilomètres.

• L'étoile la plus proche, Proxima du Centaure, se trouve à environ 4,2 années-lumière de la Terre.
• La galaxie d'Andromède est située à 2,5 millions d'années-lumière de nous.
• Voyager à travers des milliers d'années-lumière reste un rêve pour l'humanité.

Are there other ways to say 'year' in French?

Are there other ways to say “year” in French?

Our list features the most common ways to say “year” in French, focusing on the critical difference between an and année. But French also has more specific terms, from agricultural vocabulary to expressions used in business and education.

The best way to master these terms is to observe them in context. When you see a word like millésime or exercice, look at the surrounding text. Is it about wine? Is it about finance? The context is your most reliable guide.

Try to create your own example sentences. For instance, you could write about your année scolaire (school year) or the exercice fiscal (fiscal year) of a company you follow. Active use is key to memorization.

Pay attention when you read French news articles or watch French films. You'll start to notice how these different words for “year” are used naturally by native speakers, which will deepen your understanding of the culture and the language.

For a deeper dive into related expressions, a good French dictionary is invaluable. Looking up an or année on a site like Larousse or WordReference will show you dozens of idiomatic phrases that use these words.

I hope this article has helped you understand the nuances of saying “year” in French. Mastering these details takes time, but every step makes your French sound more natural. As the proverb says, Paris ne s'est pas fait en un jour (Paris wasn't built in a day). Bonne continuation!