金
jīn/t͡ɕin⁵⁵/
jin is the Chinese word for gold.
In modern Chinese, 金 is used to refer to the element gold. It can also be used more broadly to refer to metals in certain classical or technical contexts. It is used to describe the precious yellow metal used for jewelry and currency.
What does it mean word for word?
The character 金 literally means gold or metal.
Which one should you use?
While 金 means gold, the compound word 黄金 is the more common way to specify the precious metal in everyday modern Chinese.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is jīn. The IPA is /tɕin⁵⁵/.
Did you know?
Examples in context
- 金焰Jin Yan (Chinese actor)This example shows the use of 金 in the name of the actor Jin Yan.
- 金聖歎Jin Shengtan (Chinese literary critic)This example shows the use of 金 in the name of the literary critic Jin Shengtan.
- 你好，我叫金涛。Hello, my name is Jin Tao.
Example conversation
A woman is showing her new jewelry to a man.
- 俊杰 Junjie佳怡，你的项链真漂亮。Jiāyí, nǐ de xiàngliàn zhēn piàoliang.Jiāyí, your necklace is really beautiful.
- 佳怡 Jiayi谢谢，这是金子做的。Xièxie, zhè shì jīnzi zuò de.Thank you, it is made of gold.
- 俊杰 Junjie真的吗？看起来很有质感。Zhēn de ma? Kàn qǐlái hěn yǒu zhìgǎn.Really? It looks very high quality.
- 佳怡 Jiayi是的，我很喜欢这个颜色。Shì de, wǒ hěn xǐhuan zhège yánsè.Yes, I really like this color.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 金, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 金, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
