Meaning of 银
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- silver
- silver-colored
- relating to money or currency
How to use 银
On its own 银 means silver, but you will see it most in words like 银行 (yínháng, bank) and 银色 (yínsè, silver color), since silver was long tied to money. Example: 我去银行取钱。(Wǒ qù yínháng qǔ qián.) I am going to the bank to withdraw money.
银 (yín) has the metal radical 钅 on the left, so it is a metal. The right side 艮 (gèn) hints at the sound, so think of 银 as the metal that sounds like yín: silver.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 银 (yín) with 很 (hěn) or 跟 (gēn), which share the right part 艮. Remember that only 银 has the metal radical 钅. Also keep the second tone in yín. Do not say yǐn, which sounds like 饮 (drink).
银 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
银 yín · silver · 11 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 银.
Questions about 银
What does 银 mean?
银 (yín) means "silver; silver-colored" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 银?
银 is made of 1 character: 银 (11 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 银 an HSK word?
Yes. 银 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 银 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 银 is written 銀.
Why does 银行 mean bank?
In the past, silver was used as currency in China, so 银 came to relate to money. 行 (háng) means a business or firm, so 银行 is literally a money business.
How do I say gold, silver, and bronze medals in Chinese?
They are 金牌 (jīnpái), 银牌 (yínpái), and 铜牌 (tóngpái). All three metals use the 钅 radical.