yuan

noun

yu·​an ˈyü-ən  yü-ˈän 

plural yuan

1

: the basic monetary unit of the People's Republic of China see Money Table compare renminbi

2

: the dollar of the Republic of China (Taiwan)

Examples of yuan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Jiankui spent three years in prison and was fined three million yuan (about $430,000 at the time) for violating medical regulations. —Laura Dattaro, Scientific American, 10 June 2026

Rural residents of the province had per capita income of 13,052 yuan ($1,927) in 2020, while rural residents in China's wealthy province Zhejiang had income of 31,930 yuan ($4,714) in 2020. —ABC News, 10 June 2026

Changtie brought out a seven-yuan pack of Hongtashan and handed Li and me a smoke. —Literary Hub, 8 June 2026

Beijing opened a showroom in August filled with robots including a soccer-playing humanoid Booster T1 for 199,000 yuan (about $29,400), and a 349,999 yuan R1 Pro made by start-up Galaxea, which can sort packages. —Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 8 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Chinese (Beijing) yuán

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for yuan

• anton
• argon
• axon
• baronne
• baryon
• baton
• boron
• buisson
• bygone
• capon
• cardon
• chiffon

Kids Definition

yuan

noun

yu·​an ˈyü-ən  yu̇-ˈän 

plural yuan

1

: the basic unit of money in China

2

: a coin or bill worth one yuan

Geographical Definition

Yuan

geographical name

Yu·​an ˈywen 

ˈywän

1

river 500 miles (805 kilometers) long in southeast central China flowing from Guizhou northeast to northeastern Hunan

2

see red sense 4