- yen (1)
- "Japanese monetary unit," 1875, from Japanese yen, from Chinese yuan "round, round object, circle, dollar."
- yen (2)
- "sharp desire, hunger," 1906, earlier yin "intense craving for opium" (1876), from Chinese (Cantonese) yan "craving," or from a Beijing dialect word for "smoke." Reinforced in Eng. by influence of yearn.