千qiān : Thousands, thousands of; indicating many.
金jīn : Gold; or money.

This term refers to something that is extremely precious, like time or a special person. It's also a respectful form of addressing someone's daughter or unwedded young woman.

千金(qiān jīn):字面意思指某件事物很宝贵，比如时间、物件或人。千金也是对别人家女儿或者未婚女子的敬称。

词语溯源How it came to be:

There is a story behind the word Qian Jin; it originates from the legend of Wu Zixu, a politician of the Wu kingdom during the Spring and Autumn Period (722–481 BC). He fled to the state of Wu to escape persecution from the King of Chu. He was saved by a young woman and warned her not to reveal his identity. Legend has it that the woman jumped into a river and drowned herself to keep her promise of secrecy. Wu grieved for her and wrote "I shall repay your kindness within 10 years" with his blood on a nearby stone. Years later, Wu became minister of the kingdom to which he fled and built a gold statue of the young lady beside the river where she drowned to honor her sacrifice. From then on, Qian Jin became the respectful form to address another's daughter or unwedded young lady.

千金这个词背后，有一个非常感人的故事。相传春秋战国时期，伍子胥因为政治迫害逃离楚国，投奔吴国，途中得到了一位少女的救助。伍子胥告诫少女此事 要保密，少女为获信任，投江自尽。伍子胥为此伤感不已，在石上血书：“十年之后，千金报德！”几年后伍子胥任宰相，特地在江边用黄金塑少女像纪念她。所 以"千金"就成了对未婚女子的敬称。

如何使用How to use it in a sentence:

qīng chūn bǎo guì ,qiān jīn nán mǎi
青春宝贵,千金难买
Youth is more precious than a thousand pieces of gold

nín yǒu jǐ wèi qiān jīn ?
您有几位千金?
How many daughters do you have? (Respectful form to refer to another's unwedded daughter)

qiān jīn dà xiǎo jiě
千金大小姐
Fair lady (Unwedded young lady)