How to Say "Money" in Chinese?

Updated on December 27, 2022

Money is a very important part of our life. In particular, Chinese people pay special attention to the financial aspects of life.

Do you know how to say “money” in Chinese?

Welcome to Ming Mandarin’s free online Mandarin Chinese lessons. In this post, I’ll share with you some very useful money related terms and phrases.

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How to say money in Chinese?

Money: qián (钱).

The most common character to express the word “money” is qián (钱).

Btw, 钱 is also a family name (surname) in China. One of my friends is called Gui Qian (钱贵, qián guì). Can you guess the meaning of this name? “Expensive Money” or “Precious”. 🙂

Now let me introduce some simple phrases and sentences to explain “money”.

Introduction to Chinese History (Part 1).

#1. To spend money: 花钱, huā qián

Example sentence 1

I spent two hundred yuan today.
Wǒ jīntiān huāle liǎng bǎi kuài qián.
我今天花了两百块钱。

Example sentence 2

Don’t waste money.
Nǐ bùyào luàn huā qián.
你不要乱花钱。

#2. To earn money: 赚钱, zhuàn qián

赚钱 can also mean “make money”, “money making” or “to make profit”.

Example sentence 3

Making money is harder than spending money.
Zhuàn qián bǐ huā qián nán.
赚钱比花钱难。

Example sentence 4

In China, it is generally men who make money to support their families.
Zài Zhōngguó, yībān shì nánrén zhuàn qián yǎngjiā.
在中国，一般是男人赚钱养家。

#3. To borrow money: 借钱, jiè qián

Example sentence 5

Can you lend me ten yuan?
Nǐ kěyǐ jiè wǒ 10 kuài qián ma?
你可以借我10块钱吗？

Example sentence 6

I don’t like to borrow money from others.
Wǒ bù xǐhuān xiàng biérén jiè qián.
我不喜欢向别人借钱。

#4. To withdraw money: 取钱, qǔ qián

Example sentence 7

I’m out of cash. I’ll go to the bank and get some money.
Wǒ méi xiànjīn le, wǒ qù yínháng qǔ diǎn qián.
我没现金了，我去银行取点钱。