円 means “yen / circle”

Watch: Gen and Shibamaru learn 円

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Where 円 comes from

円 is a simpler form of the older kanji 圓, which meant "round." The name of the money is often explained by the round shape of coins.

Stroke order (4 strokes)

1. 1
2. 2
3. 3
4. 4

Words with 円

• 

  円えん

  EN

  yen

• 

  百円ひゃくえん

  HYAKUEN

  100 yen

• 

  千円せんえん

  SENEN

  1,000 yen

• 

  一万円いちまんえん

  ICHIMANEN

  10,000 yen

The part of each word written with 円 is shown in orange. Audio: the readings from our video.

Reading tips

• Prices in Japan are written with 円: 百円 (HYAKUEN), 千円 (SENEN), 一万円 (ICHIMANEN).
• In English we say "yen," but in Japanese the sound is えん (EN).
• 円い (MARUI) means "round," but most people write this word as 丸い.

In the video

• Gen4つも あるのか！4 of them!
• Shibamaruぜんぶ つかえるよYou can use them all.

The money in the video is toy money drawn for the show, not real Japanese money.

Example sentences

• これは 百円です。

  KORE WA HYAKUEN DESU.

  This is 100 yen.

• 千円で かえますか。

  SENEN DE KAEMASU KA.

  Can I buy it with 1,000 yen?

Keep learning kanji

• GENKI I Textbook (3rd Edition)

  Beginner

  A popular first textbook used in many university courses. Each lesson has a dialogue, grammar explanations in English, and plenty of practice.

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• Japanese from Zero! 1

  Absolute beginner

  Starts from zero. Romaji is replaced by hiragana as you learn each one, so you are reading kana before you know it.

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