What does "yen" mean?
The unit of Japanese currency (symbol: ¥) since 1871, divided into 100 sen.
Yen
/jɛn/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The unit of Japanese currency (symbol: ¥) since 1871, divided into 100 sen.
- Grammar: yen is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: ache, ache, aching, afghani.
- Useful contrasts: barter, contentment, dislike.
- Usage evidence: The picture you are looking at costs 100,000 yen.
How to use "yen"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "yen" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "yen" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "yen" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "yen" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "yen" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "ache" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "yen", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The unit of Japanese currency (symbol: ¥) since 1871, divided into 100 sen.
"Passing by those clauses of it which demand no notice, we arrive at that which provides that "each proposal (for purchase) must state the price per picul of rice in gold yen." But why in gold yen, a coin as yet so scarce as to be almost beyond the ken of the foreign merchant?"
- 2 A strong desire, urge, or yearning.
"humankind's yen for knowledge"
- 3 Opium. slang, uncountable
- 4 a yearning for something or to do something wordnet
- 5 A coin or note worth one yen.
"When banks lend, they create money out of nothing, without withdrawing it from other parts of the economy. This way, fiscal policy would not have crowded out private-sector activity yen by yen, as actually happened."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 the basic unit of money in Japan; equal to 100 sen wordnet
Verb
- 1 To have a strong desire for. transitive
"Yenning, groaning, longing after."
- 2 have a desire for something or someone who is not present wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 Alternative form of Yan (ancient kingdom) alt-of, alternative
"[...]Nothing but War was to be ſeen among ſo many different States, and their mutual Invaſions reduced the Empire into ſeven great Kingdoms, which were called Tſin, Tſou, Yen, Tchao, Han, Iſi, Ouei: The Kingdom of Yen, which at that time comprehended no more than the preſent Province of Petche li, made itſelf very ſoon Maſter of the Province of Leao tong, and by puſhing on its Conqueſts by degrees towards the Eaſt, Corea was at laſt brought under the Authority and wife Government of Tchen pen: This Kingdom for a long time withſtood the ambitious Attempts of the King of Tſin, called Tſin vang, but at laſt it fell under his Power as the other ſix had done: Hi vang, King of Yen and of Corea, was defeated, taken and killed in the Year 259 before the Birth of Chriſt, according to the Chineſe Hiſtory, and Tſin vang was acknowledged for Emperor of all China by the Name of Tſin chi hoang ti."
Antonyms
Example
"The picture you are looking at costs 100,000 yen."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "yen"?
Common synonyms include: ache, ache, aching, afghani, anna, baht.
How do you use "yen" in a sentence?
The picture you are looking at costs 100,000 yen.
How do you pronounce "yen"?
Pronounced /jɛn/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Medhurst and Hepburn’s romanizations, under the influence of earlier Portuguese romanizations, of Japanese 圓(えん) (en, “round; a round object”) as ye or yen, now 円(えん) (en), from Chinese 銀圓 /银圆 (yínyuán, “round silver object(s), especially a piece of eight”): 銀 /银 (yín, “silver”) + 圓 /圆 (yuán, “circular, round; yuan, yen, dollar”). Cognate with Chinese 元 (yuán, “monetary unit, especially RMB”) and Korean 원 (won, “North or South Korean won”). Doublet of won and yuan.
Etymology 2
Origin uncertain, but probably from Cantonese 癮 /瘾 (jan⁵, “craving”) originally in reference to opium addiction, 煙癮 /烟瘾 (jin¹ jan⁵) or 菸癮 /烟瘾 (jin¹ jan⁵): 煙 /烟 (jin¹), 菸 /烟 (jin¹, “smoke, specifically opium”). Compare the later yen (“opium”) and yen-yen.
Etymology 3
From Mandarin 煙 /烟 (yān), 菸 /烟 (yān), or Cantonese 煙 /烟 (jin¹), 菸 /烟 (jin¹, “smoke, specifically opium”). Compare the earlier yen (“strong desire”) and later yen-yen.
Etymology 4
From Mandarin 燕 (Yān), reinforced by Wade-Giles romanization: Yen¹.