| 万元 | wàn yuán | |
| 公元 | gōng yuán | CE (Common Era); Christian Era |
| 美元 | měi yuán | American dollar; US dollar |
| 公元前 | gōng yuán qián | BCE (before the Common Era); BC (before Christ) |
| 元素 | yuán sù | element; element of a set |
| 状元 | zhuàng yuán | top scorer in the palace examination (highest rank of the Imperial examination system); see 榜眼[bang3 yan3] and 探花[tan4 hua1] |
| 元帅 | yuán shuài | marshal (in the army) |
| 单元 | dān yuán | unit (forming an entity); element |
| 元首 | yuán shǒu | head of state |
| 新纪元 | xīn jì yuán | New Age (movement) |
| 多元 | duō yuán | poly-; multi- |
| 元旦 | yuán dàn | New Year's Day |