1.
twenty thousand; 20,000
The number 20,000, expressed as 二 (two) × 万 (10,000) in the Japanese numbering system. A common round figure in everyday contexts — mid-range yen amounts, attendance figures, and so on.
二万円。
Twenty thousand yen.
入場者は約二万人だった。
There were about twenty thousand attendees.
このコートは二万円もしたのに、もう破れてしまった。
This coat cost twenty thousand yen, and it's already torn.
先月、この商品は全国で二万個以上売れたそうだ。
Last month, this product reportedly sold more than twenty thousand units nationwide.
二万 is the number 20,000. In the Japanese number system, it is formed as 二 (2) × 万 (10,000).
JAPANESE NUMBER SYSTEM:
Japanese groups large numbers in units of 10,000 (万), not 1,000 as in English. For twenties of thousands:
- 一万: 10,000
- 二万: 20,000
- 三万: 30,000
- 十万: 100,000
COMMON EXPRESSIONS:
- 二万円: twenty thousand yen (roughly the price of a mid-range jacket or a nice dinner for two)
- 二万人: twenty thousand people
- 二万部: twenty thousand copies (of a book, magazine)
- 二万円札: (colloquially) twenty-thousand-yen note — note: there is no such bill; the highest is 一万円
LEARNER TIP:
二万円 is roughly the threshold between "moderately expensive" and "noticeably expensive" in everyday Japanese consumer contexts (a nice meal, a mid-range clothing item, a budget-level appliance).