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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.
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Examples of yen in a Sentence
Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 27 Sep. 2024
At the July meeting, the bank had also outlined its plan to reduce its purchases of Japanese government bonds to about 3 trillion yen ($19.64 billion) per month in the January to March 2026 quarter.
—Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 26 Sep. 2024
For December, Tokyo reigns supreme with the city’s elaborate light displays, steamy onsen hot springs, and the strong dollar against the Japanese yen all appealing draws.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 16 Sep. 2024
The comments also pushed the value of the Japanese yen higher against the U.S. dollar, a move that earlier in the summer helped send financial markets around the world reeling.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for yen 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'yen.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near yen
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“Yen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yen. Accessed 9 Oct. 2024.
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