Yankee facing hearing in 2023 say (4)

I believe the answer is:

year

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'2023 say' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.

'yankee facing hearing' is the wordplay.
'yankee' becomes 'Y' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'facing' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'hearing' becomes 'ear' (ear is a kind of hearing).
'y'+'ear'='YEAR'

'in' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for year that I've seen before include "TV advert" , "26 fortnights" , "One orbit round the sun" , "Four seasons" , "Many students" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.

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