yen

UK: /ˈjɛn/ US: /jɛn/ ,(yen)

Inflections of 'yen' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

yens

v 3rd person singular

yenning

v pres p

yenned

v past

yenned

v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

yen¹ /yɛn/   n. [countable] , pl. yen. 

1. Currency the unit of money of Japan.

yen² /yɛn/   n. [countable]

1. Informal Terms a desire;
   craving:
   had a yen for ice cream.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

yen¹  (yen), n., pl. yen. 

1. an aluminum coin and monetary unit of Japan, equal to 100 sen or 1000 rin. Symbol: ¥;
   Abbr.: Y
2. a former silver coin of Japan.

• Chinese yuán yuan
• Japanese (y)en
• 1870–75

yen² (yen),  n., v., yenned, yen•ning. [Informal.]

n. 

1. Informal Terms a desire or craving:
   I had a yen for apple pie.

v.i. 

2. Informal Terms to have a craving;
   yearn.

• dialect, dialectal Chinese (OAGuangdong) yáhn, akin to Chinese yǐn craving, addiction
• probably 1905–10, American.

Synonyms

• 1. longing, hankering, hunger, appetite.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

yen / jɛn/ noun (yen)

1. the standard monetary unit of Japan, (notionally) divided into 100 sen

Etymology: 19th Century: from Japanese en, from Chinese yüan circular object, dollar

yen / jɛn/ noun

1. a passionate, ardent, or intense longing or desire

verb (yens, yenning, yenned)

1. (intransitive) to yearn

Etymology: perhaps from Chinese (Cantonese) yăn a craving, addiction