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Although yen suggests no more than a strong desire these days (as in "a yen for a beach vacation"), at one time someone with a yen was in deep trouble: the first meaning of yen was an intense craving for opium. The word comes from Cantonese yīn-yáhn, a combination of yīn, meaning "opium," and yáhn, "craving." In English, the Chinese syllables were translated as yen-yen.
Synonyms
Examples of yen in a Sentence
Noun (2)
I have a strange yen to take the day off from work
Verb
what car lover doesn't yen for a new car at the start of every model year
Recent Examples on the Web
Amala Balakrishner, CNBC, 3 Feb. 2025
Buoyed by the recent strength of its digital games and a weakened yen, Sony’s shares have recently traded at their highest level in more than two decades.
—River Akira Davis, New York Times, 29 Jan. 2025
Driving the news: After a strong run-up since Trump's election win, the U.S. dollar has weakened against a basket of currencies, including the Japanese yen.
—Courtenay Brown, Axios, 24 Jan. 2025
The Best Time to Book a Flight for Domestic, International, and Summer Travel
How to Find an Affordable Hotel
The weak yen has made finding a bargain on a four-star hotel relatively easy.
—Lindsay Cohn, Travel + Leisure, 14 Jan. 2025
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Noun
Its third-quarter net income came in at 33.2 billion yen, 69.6% down from the 102.8 billion yen the year before.
—Amala Balakrishner, CNBC, 3 Feb. 2025
Buoyed by the recent strength of its digital games and a weakened yen, Sony’s shares have recently traded at their highest level in more than two decades.
—River Akira Davis, New York Times, 29 Jan. 2025
Driving the news: After a strong run-up since Trump's election win, the U.S. dollar has weakened against a basket of currencies, including the Japanese yen.
—Courtenay Brown, Axios, 24 Jan. 2025
The Best Time to Book a Flight for Domestic, International, and Summer Travel
How to Find an Affordable Hotel
The weak yen has made finding a bargain on a four-star hotel relatively easy.
—Lindsay Cohn, Travel + Leisure, 14 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for yen
Dictionary Entries Near yen
Cite this Entry
“Yen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yen. Accessed 8 Feb. 2025.
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