HSK 1 Vocabulary List: 150 Words (HSK 2.0) + New HSK 3.0 List

HSK 1 is the first level of China's official Mandarin proficiency exam. Its 150 words cover the basics of daily life: people, numbers, time, actions and simple conversation. Learn these and you can handle simple introductions, shopping, and daily life in Chinese.

This is the HSK 2.0 list. The exam changes to HSK 3.0 worldwide on 13 December 2026. See the HSK 3.0 level 1 word list and what changed in HSK 3.0.

What Is HSK 1?

The HSK (汉语水平考试 — Hànyǔ Shuǐpíng Kǎoshì) is China's official standardised test of Mandarin Chinese for non-native speakers. HSK 1 is the entry level, covering 150 words and basic sentence patterns.

At HSK 1 level you can understand and use very simple Chinese phrases, introduce yourself and others, and ask and answer questions about personal details. It corresponds roughly to A1 on the European CEFR scale.

HSK 1 exam format: 40 questions · ~40 minutes · Listening + Reading sections
Vocabulary required: 150 words
Passing score: 120 / 200 points

The 20 Most Useful HSK1 Words

Start with these high-frequency words; they turn up in almost every sentence. Click any character to open it in HanziBook.

• 我 wǒ — I / me
• 你 nǐ — you
• 他 tā — he / him
• 她 tā — she / her
• 们 men — (plural suffix: 我们 = we)
• 是 shì — to be (is / are / am)
• 有 yǒu — to have / there is
• 不 bù — no / not (negation)
• 很 hěn — very
• 都 dōu — all / both
• 在 zài — at / in / to be at
• 来 lái — to come
• 去 qù — to go
• 说 shuō — to speak / to say
• 吃 chī — to eat
• 喝 hē — to drink
• 看 kàn — to look / to watch / to read
• 好 hǎo — good / well
• 大 dà — big / large
• 小 xiǎo — small / little

HSK1 Words by Category

The full 150-word HSK1 list spans these categories. Click any character to practice it in HanziBook.

People

人 男 女 儿子 女儿 朋友 老师 学生

Family

妈妈 爸爸 哥哥 姐姐 弟弟 妹妹

Numbers

一 二 三 四 五 六 七 八 九 十 百 千 零

Time

今天 明天 昨天 年 月 日 时候 现在

Places

家 学校 中国 北京 上海

Food

米饭 面条 水 茶 牛奶 苹果

Actions

吃 喝 看 说 来 去 学 写 买 工作

Adjectives

好 大 小 多 少 高 热 冷 贵 便宜

Tip: HanziBook includes all HSK1–4 vocabulary (500+ words) with pinyin, English meanings, stroke animations, and printable practice sheets. Use the Browse panel to filter by HSK level and category.

How to Learn HSK1 Vocabulary Efficiently

1. Learn in groups, not in isolation — Group words by theme (family, time, food). Words learned together come back together: recall one and the others follow.
2. Write every new word ten times — Chinese characters are visual and motor memories. Writing activates both, and the muscle memory from correct stroke order helps long-term recall.
3. Review with spaced repetition — Review words at increasing intervals: day 1, day 3, day 7, day 14. HanziBook's lesson builder automatically includes 20% spaced-repetition words from previous lessons in every printed practice sheet.
4. Use example sentences from day one — Don't learn vocabulary in a vacuum. A word learned in a sentence such as 我是老师 (wǒ shì lǎoshī, "I am a teacher") sticks far better than a bare flashcard.