About HSK 1
HSK 1 is the entry level of the New HSK 3.0 system, introduced by China's Centre for Language Education and Cooperation in 2021. It covers 150 vocabulary items — a tighter, more focused set than the old HSK 1 (which had the same 150 words but a simpler exam format).
Passing HSK 1 means you can understand and use very familiar everyday expressions, introduce yourself and others, and ask and answer basic questions about personal details. It is roughly equivalent to A1 on the CEFR scale.
This is also the foundation layer for everything above it. The 150 words here appear constantly across HSK 2 through 9 — mastering them thoroughly now pays compound returns for years.
How to Use This List
- Study 10 words per day — at that pace, you complete the full 150 in 15 days. Use the categories below as natural daily batches (pronouns on day 1, numbers on days 2–3, time words on day 4, etc.).
- For each word: character → pinyin → tone → example. Do not memorise the English in isolation. Always attach meaning to a short sentence. The example sentences in the table below are designed to be short enough to memorise directly.
- Start with the high-frequency words first. Pronouns, common verbs, numbers, and time words are the backbone of beginner conversation. Once those are solid, the remaining categories fall into place faster.
- Say every word aloud. Chinese tones are meaning-carrying, not decorative. 买 (mǎi, to buy) and 卖 (mài, to sell) are one tone apart. Silent study will let these slip through.
Pronouns (10)
Numbers (15)
Time (12)
Family (8)
People & Titles (8)
Common Verbs (25)
Adjectives (15)
Places (10)
Food & Drink (10)
Objects (10)
Question Words (8)
Function Words & Adverbs (19)
Complete HSK 1 Vocabulary — All 150 Words
Grouped by category. Each entry includes the character, pinyin with tones, English meaning, and a short example sentence.
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 我 | wǒ | I / me | 我是学生。 | I am a student. |
| 你 | nǐ | you (singular) | 你好吗？ | How are you? |
| 他 | tā | he / him | 他是我的朋友。 | He is my friend. |
| 她 | tā | she / her | 她是老师。 | She is a teacher. |
| 它 | tā | it | 它很大。 | It is very big. |
| 我们 | wǒmen | we / us | 我们去学校。 | We go to school. |
| 你们 | nǐmen | you (plural) | 你们吃饭了吗？ | Have you all eaten? |
| 他们 | tāmen | they / them (male/mixed) | 他们都是学生。 | They are all students. |
| 她们 | tāmen | they / them (female) | 她们是好朋友。 | They are good friends. |
| 大家 | dàjiā | everyone / everybody | 大家好！ | Hello everyone! |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 零 | líng | zero | 今天零度。 | It is zero degrees today. |
| 一 | yī | one | 我有一个苹果。 | I have one apple. |
| 二 | èr | two | 我有二十块钱。 | I have twenty yuan. |
| 三 | sān | three | 三个人。 | Three people. |
| 四 | sì | four | 四月是春天。 | April is spring. |
| 五 | wǔ | five | 五点钟。 | Five o'clock. |
| 六 | liù | six | 六个学生。 | Six students. |
| 七 | qī | seven | 七天。 | Seven days. |
| 八 | bā | eight | 八月很热。 | August is very hot. |
| 九 | jiǔ | nine | 九块钱。 | Nine yuan. |
| 十 | shí | ten | 十个人。 | Ten people. |
| 百 | bǎi | hundred | 一百块钱。 | One hundred yuan. |
| 千 | qiān | thousand | 一千个字。 | One thousand characters. |
| 万 | wàn | ten thousand | 一万元。 | Ten thousand yuan. |
| 两 | liǎng | two (with measure words) | 两个苹果。 | Two apples. |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 今天 | jīntiān | today | 今天天气好。 | The weather is good today. |
| 明天 | míngtiān | tomorrow | 明天我去学校。 | Tomorrow I go to school. |
| 昨天 | zuótiān | yesterday | 昨天我吃了米饭。 | Yesterday I ate rice. |
| 上午 | shàngwǔ | morning / a.m. | 上午九点上课。 | Class starts at 9 a.m. |
| 下午 | xiàwǔ | afternoon / p.m. | 下午三点见。 | See you at 3 p.m. |
| 晚上 | wǎnshang | evening / night | 晚上我看书。 | I read books in the evening. |
| 年 | nián | year | 今年是好年。 | This is a good year. |
| 月 | yuè | month | 这个月很忙。 | This month is very busy. |
| 日 | rì | day / date | 一月一日是元旦。 | January 1st is New Year's Day. |
| 星期 | xīngqī | week / day of week | 星期一我工作。 | I work on Monday. |
| 现在 | xiànzài | now | 现在几点？ | What time is it now? |
| 时候 | shíhòu | time / moment / when | 什么时候去？ | When are we going? |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 爸爸 | bàba | father / dad | 我爸爸是医生。 | My father is a doctor. |
| 妈妈 | māma | mother / mum | 妈妈做饭很好吃。 | Mum's cooking is delicious. |
| 哥哥 | gēge | older brother | 我哥哥很高。 | My older brother is very tall. |
| 姐姐 | jiějie | older sister | 姐姐在学校。 | My older sister is at school. |
| 弟弟 | dìdi | younger brother | 弟弟喜欢吃苹果。 | My younger brother likes apples. |
| 妹妹 | mèimei | younger sister | 妹妹很漂亮。 | My younger sister is beautiful. |
| 儿子 | érzi | son | 他儿子很聪明。 | His son is very smart. |
| 女儿 | nǚér | daughter | 她女儿七岁。 | Her daughter is seven years old. |
People & Titles — 8 words
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 先生 | xiānsheng | Mr. / sir / husband | 王先生你好。 | Hello, Mr. Wang. |
| 女士 | nǚshì | Ms. / madam | 李女士很忙。 | Ms. Li is very busy. |
| 老师 | lǎoshī | teacher | 老师教中文。 | The teacher teaches Chinese. |
| 学生 | xuésheng | student | 她是好学生。 | She is a good student. |
| 朋友 | péngyou | friend | 他是我的好朋友。 | He is my good friend. |
| 同学 | tóngxué | classmate | 我们是同学。 | We are classmates. |
| 医生 | yīshēng | doctor | 医生说我很好。 | The doctor says I am fine. |
| 人 | rén | person / people | 这里有很多人。 | There are many people here. |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 是 | shì | to be (is/am/are) | 我是中国人。 | I am Chinese. |
| 有 | yǒu | to have / there is | 我有一本书。 | I have a book. |
| 在 | zài | to be at / in / on | 他在家。 | He is at home. |
| 来 | lái | to come | 请进来！ | Please come in! |
| 去 | qù | to go | 我去商店。 | I go to the shop. |
| 说 | shuō | to speak / say | 他说中文。 | He speaks Chinese. |
| 听 | tīng | to listen / hear | 我听音乐。 | I listen to music. |
| 看 | kàn | to look / watch / read | 她看书。 | She reads a book. |
| 吃 | chī | to eat | 我们吃米饭。 | We eat rice. |
| 喝 | hē | to drink | 我喝水。 | I drink water. |
| 买 | mǎi | to buy | 我买苹果。 | I buy apples. |
| 打 | dǎ | to hit / play / make (a call) | 我打电话。 | I make a phone call. |
| 写 | xiě | to write | 他写汉字。 | He writes Chinese characters. |
| 读 | dú | to read (aloud) | 请大声读。 | Please read aloud. |
| 学 | xué | to study / learn | 我学中文。 | I study Chinese. |
| 工作 | gōngzuò | to work / work (n.) | 他工作很忙。 | He is busy with work. |
| 住 | zhù | to live / reside | 我住在北京。 | I live in Beijing. |
| 知道 | zhīdào | to know | 我知道了。 | I understand now. |
| 喜欢 | xǐhuān | to like | 我喜欢中文。 | I like Chinese. |
| 想 | xiǎng | to want / think / miss | 我想喝水。 | I want to drink water. |
| 要 | yào | to want / need / will | 你要什么？ | What do you want? |
| 会 | huì | can / know how to | 我会说中文。 | I can speak Chinese. |
| 能 | néng | can / be able to | 你能帮我吗？ | Can you help me? |
| 可以 | kěyǐ | may / can / allowed to | 可以进来吗？ | May I come in? |
| 叫 | jiào | to be called / to call | 我叫李明。 | My name is Li Ming. |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 好 | hǎo | good / well | 她很好。 | She is very well. |
| 大 | dà | big / large | 这个苹果很大。 | This apple is very big. |
| 小 | xiǎo | small / little | 那只猫很小。 | That cat is very small. |
| 多 | duō | many / much | 这里人很多。 | There are many people here. |
| 少 | shǎo | few / little (amount) | 这里人很少。 | There are few people here. |
| 高 | gāo | tall / high | 他很高。 | He is very tall. |
| 热 | rè | hot | 今天很热。 | It is very hot today. |
| 冷 | lěng | cold | 冬天很冷。 | Winter is very cold. |
| 新 | xīn | new | 这是新书。 | This is a new book. |
| 老 | lǎo | old (people/things) | 那是老朋友。 | That is an old friend. |
| 贵 | guì | expensive | 这个太贵了。 | This is too expensive. |
| 便宜 | piányí | cheap / inexpensive | 这里东西很便宜。 | Things here are very cheap. |
| 好吃 | hǎochī | delicious / tasty | 这个菜很好吃。 | This dish is very tasty. |
| 漂亮 | piàoliang | pretty / beautiful | 她很漂亮。 | She is very beautiful. |
| 快 | kuài | fast / quick | 他跑得很快。 | He runs very fast. |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 学校 | xuéxiào | school | 我去学校上课。 | I go to school for class. |
| 家 | jiā | home / family | 我在家。 | I am at home. |
| 医院 | yīyuàn | hospital | 他在医院工作。 | He works at the hospital. |
| 商店 | shāngdiàn | shop / store | 我去商店买东西。 | I go to the shop to buy things. |
| 饭馆 | fànguǎn | restaurant | 我们去饭馆吃饭。 | We go to the restaurant to eat. |
| 机场 | jīchǎng | airport | 我在机场等你。 | I am waiting for you at the airport. |
| 车站 | chēzhàn | bus/train station | 车站在哪里？ | Where is the station? |
| 宾馆 | bīnguǎn | hotel | 宾馆很好。 | The hotel is very nice. |
| 银行 | yínháng | bank | 我去银行取钱。 | I go to the bank to withdraw money. |
| 超市 | chāoshì | supermarket | 超市里有很多东西。 | There are many things in the supermarket. |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 饭 | fàn | meal / cooked rice | 吃饭了吗？ | Have you eaten? |
| 水 | shuǐ | water | 我要喝水。 | I want to drink water. |
| 茶 | chá | tea | 你喝茶吗？ | Do you drink tea? |
| 咖啡 | kāfēi | coffee | 我喜欢喝咖啡。 | I like to drink coffee. |
| 米饭 | mǐfàn | cooked rice | 我吃米饭。 | I eat rice. |
| 面条 | miàntiáo | noodles | 面条很好吃。 | Noodles are delicious. |
| 苹果 | píngguǒ | apple | 我买了三个苹果。 | I bought three apples. |
| 菜 | cài | vegetable / dish / food | 这个菜很好吃。 | This dish is very tasty. |
| 肉 | ròu | meat | 我不吃肉。 | I do not eat meat. |
| 鱼 | yú | fish | 他喜欢吃鱼。 | He likes to eat fish. |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 书 | shū | book | 这是一本好书。 | This is a good book. |
| 电脑 | diànnǎo | computer | 我用电脑工作。 | I use a computer for work. |
| 手机 | shǒujī | mobile phone | 我的手机在哪里？ | Where is my phone? |
| 钱 | qián | money | 这个要多少钱？ | How much money is this? |
| 车 | chē | car / vehicle | 他有一辆车。 | He has a car. |
| 飞机 | fēijī | airplane | 我坐飞机去北京。 | I fly to Beijing by plane. |
| 衣服 | yīfu | clothes | 我买了新衣服。 | I bought new clothes. |
| 东西 | dōngxi | thing / stuff | 这是什么东西？ | What is this thing? |
| 照片 | zhàopiàn | photo / photograph | 这张照片很好看。 | This photo looks great. |
| 名字 | míngzi | name | 你叫什么名字？ | What is your name? |
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 什么 | shénme | what | 你吃什么？ | What do you eat? |
| 哪 | nǎ | which | 哪个好？ | Which one is good? |
| 哪里 | nǎlǐ | where | 你在哪里？ | Where are you? |
| 谁 | shéi | who | 他是谁？ | Who is he? |
| 多少 | duōshao | how many / how much | 多少钱？ | How much does it cost? |
| 几 | jǐ | how many (small number) | 你有几个苹果？ | How many apples do you have? |
| 怎么 | zěnme | how / why | 怎么去？ | How do we get there? |
| 为什么 | wèishénme | why | 你为什么来？ | Why did you come? |
Function Words & Adverbs — 19 words
| Character | Pinyin | English | Example | Translation |
|---|
| 不 | bù | not / no (negation) | 我不去。 | I am not going. |
| 很 | hěn | very | 她很好。 | She is very good. |
| 也 | yě | also / too | 我也去。 | I am also going. |
| 都 | dōu | all / both / already | 我们都去。 | We are all going. |
| 还 | hái | still / also / yet | 他还在学校。 | He is still at school. |
| 就 | jiù | just / then / exactly | 我就是他。 | I am exactly him. |
| 已经 | yǐjīng | already | 我已经吃了。 | I have already eaten. |
| 再 | zài | again / once more | 请再说一次。 | Please say it once more. |
| 又 | yòu | again (completed action) | 他又来了。 | He came again. |
| 最 | zuì | most / -est (superlative) | 她最漂亮。 | She is the most beautiful. |
| 太 | tài | too / excessively | 太贵了。 | It is too expensive. |
| 非常 | fēicháng | extremely / very much | 非常好！ | Extremely good! |
| 一点 | yīdiǎn | a little / a bit | 我会一点中文。 | I know a little Chinese. |
| 一些 | yīxiē | some / a few | 我买了一些菜。 | I bought some vegetables. |
| 一起 | yīqǐ | together | 我们一起去。 | Let us go together. |
| 一样 | yīyàng | same / alike | 我们一样高。 | We are the same height. |
| 因为 | yīnwèi | because | 因为下雨，我不去。 | Because it is raining, I am not going. |
| 所以 | suǒyǐ | therefore / so | 他累了，所以睡觉。 | He was tired, so he slept. |
| 但是 | dànshì | but / however | 我想去，但是没有时间。 | I want to go, but I have no time. |
Study Tips Specific to HSK 1
Use spaced repetition (Anki) for the full list
Anki is free and forces you to review cards at the precise moment you are about to forget them. Import this list as a deck with character on the front, pinyin + English + example on the back. Set new cards to 10 per day. You will finish the deck in 15 days and retain most of it at the 3-month mark.
Focus on the 50 most common words first
Not all 150 words have equal frequency. These appear in almost every beginner sentence — learn these before touching the rest of the list:
的了在是不有我他这们你好来去说吃喝看想要会能可以什么哪里多少今天明天很也都大家工作喜欢知道一起已经因为所以但是
Write characters by hand — at least once per word
Typing uses phonetics; reading uses shape recognition. Writing by hand uses both — and embeds stroke order, which is the fastest path to recognising characters in the wild. You do not need to be calligraphic. A grid notebook (田字格) and 5 minutes per day is enough.
Drill tones from day one
Tones are not optional decoration. 买 (mǎi, buy, 3rd tone) and 卖 (mài, sell, 4th tone) look similar and are one tone apart. Getting this wrong mid-conversation creates real confusion. Use the pinyin in this list to practise correct tone production from the start — it is much harder to fix bad tone habits later.
Next Steps
Once you have worked through the 150 words above:
- Take the HSK Level Test → /hsk/quiz/ — test your recall under timed conditions
- Move to HSK 2 → /hsk/level-2/ — 500 additional words covering more verbs, adjectives, and conversational patterns
- Practise reading → /reading/ — graded texts where you will see these 150 words in actual sentences
- Review the full HSK 1 level guide → /hsk/level-1/ — exam format, grammar patterns, and study plan
Browse All HSK 3.0 Word Lists
Vocabulary lists for all 9 New HSK levels — with characters, pinyin, and English definitions.
View HSK 3.0 Guide →