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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 of yen
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Noun (2)
Verb
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
Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 18 Dec. 2025
That is throwing a wrench into a trading strategy that relies on borrowing relatively cheap Japanese yen.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 1 Dec. 2025
While Hollywood’s yen for the sequel kicked off in the 1970s, with results in categories good (The Godfather Part II), bad (More American Graffiti), and ugly (The Shaggy D.A.), the 1980s is when the form really exploded.
—John Ortved, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2025
But then a decade later, Kohler quite literally invented the bathtub—a clawfoot design still popular today among those with a yen for nostalgia.
—Matthew Korfhage, Wired News, 26 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for yen
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Noun
Signals around the neutral, or terminal, rate — one that balances inflation and economic growth — and comments on yen weakness will be some of the things to look out for.
—Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 18 Dec. 2025
That is throwing a wrench into a trading strategy that relies on borrowing relatively cheap Japanese yen.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 1 Dec. 2025
While Hollywood’s yen for the sequel kicked off in the 1970s, with results in categories good (The Godfather Part II), bad (More American Graffiti), and ugly (The Shaggy D.A.), the 1980s is when the form really exploded.
—John Ortved, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2025
But then a decade later, Kohler quite literally invented the bathtub—a clawfoot design still popular today among those with a yen for nostalgia.
—Matthew Korfhage, Wired News, 26 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for yen
Cite this Entry
“Yen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yen. Accessed 23 Dec. 2025.
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