年

• Chronological: Year or annual cycle.
• Agricultural: The crop or the harvest itself (e.g., 年歉, "crop failure").
• Personal: Age, seniority, or life stage.

• Measure Word: Functions as its own classifier for counting years.
• Functional Shift: In compounds related to age, may shift from a noun of time to a descriptor of maturity or seniority.

Contrast with 歲 (suì): While often interchangeable, 年 tends toward the cyclical experience and the broader natural/agricultural cycle, whereas 歲 typically refers to the incremental tally or the specific count of years.

Tang-period reading: *nen.

Avoid importing modern calendar sensibilities; in early texts, the "year" is often defined by seasonal transitions and grain ripening rather than a fixed solar count. Determine whether the context refers to time as a measurement or to the sustenance produced by that period.