HSK 1 Vocabulary List: All 150 Words with Example Sentences

The HSK 1 vocabulary list, under the HSK 2.0 standard most test centres still use, has exactly 150 words. It covers pronouns, numbers, basic time and place words, everyday nouns like family and food, a set of common verbs, a handful of adjectives, and the grammar particles that hold simple sentences together. Under the newer HSK 3.0 standard, that number jumps to roughly 500 words, so always confirm which standard applies to you at chinesetest.cn before you start studying.

This article gives you the full 150-word list organized by category with pinyin and translations, followed by example sentences for the words you’ll actually reach for first. For the study plan that wraps around this list, see our HSK 1 study plan; for the full picture of what changed under the newer standard, see HSK 3.0 vs HSK 2.0.

How many words are on the HSK 1 list, and which standard is this?

This list follows HSK 2.0 — 150 cumulative words, no official character target, no writing section. It’s still the standard most learners and test centres worldwide sit, even as HSK 3.0 rolls out gradually through 2026. If your test centre runs HSK 3.0, expect roughly 500 words and 300 characters at the same “HSK 1” label — more than triple this list. Our HSK guide breaks down every level under both standards if you need the bigger picture.

What is the complete HSK 1 vocabulary list, by category?

Here is every one of the 150 words, grouped the way you’ll actually use them.

Pronouns

Question words

Numbers and quantifiers

Time and place nouns

People

Food, objects, and everyday things

Verbs

Adjectives, adverbs, and grammar words

That’s the full 150. Notice how heavily it leans toward concrete, immediate-need vocabulary — family, food, time, simple questions — with almost no abstract words. That’s deliberate: HSK 1 exists to prove you can survive a basic exchange, not discuss ideas.

What are example sentences for the most useful HSK 1 words?

Isolated words don’t stick. Here are sentences that put the highest-frequency words to work — the kind you’ll meet constantly once you start reading graded stories.

Introducing yourself

• 我是学生。 (Wǒ shì xuésheng.) — “I am a student.”
• 我叫王明。 (Wǒ jiào Wáng Míng.) — “My name is Wang Ming.”
• 她是我的朋友。 (Tā shì wǒ de péngyou.) — “She is my friend.”

Family and people

• 这是我爸爸，那是我妈妈。 (Zhè shì wǒ bàba, nà shì wǒ māma.) — “This is my dad, that is my mom.”
• 我有一个哥哥。 (Wǒ yǒu yí ge gēge.) — “I have an older brother.” (哥哥 isn’t on the 150-word list, but 有 + 个 is the pattern to notice.)

Numbers and time

• 现在几点？ (Xiànzài jǐ diǎn?) — “What time is it now?”
• 今天是星期五。 (Jīntiān shì xīngqīwǔ.) — “Today is Friday.”
• 我八岁了。 (Wǒ bā suì le.) — “I am eight years old.”

Wants and needs

• 我想喝水。 (Wǒ xiǎng hē shuǐ.) — “I want to drink water.”
• 我想买水果。 (Wǒ xiǎng mǎi shuǐguǒ.) — “I want to buy fruit.”
• 我不喝茶。 (Wǒ bù hē chá.) — “I don’t drink tea.”
• 我没有钱。 (Wǒ méiyǒu qián.) — “I don’t have money.”

Questions

• 你是哪国人？ (Nǐ shì nǎ guó rén?) — “Which country are you from?”
• 这是什么？ (Zhè shì shénme?) — “What is this?”
• 你叫什么名字？ (Nǐ jiào shénme míngzi?) — “What is your name?”
• 你喜欢猫吗？ (Nǐ xǐhuan māo ma?) — “Do you like cats?”

Describing things

• 天气很冷。 (Tiānqì hěn lěng.) — “The weather is very cold.”
• 这本书很好。 (Zhè běn shū hěn hǎo.) — “This book is good.”
• 我很高兴。 (Wǒ hěn gāoxìng.) — “I am very happy.”

Notice the recurring shapes: 是 for “A is B,” 有 for possession, 想 + verb for “want to,” and 吗 tacked on the end for any yes/no question. Learn those five patterns and roughly a third of this list becomes usable immediately.

How should you actually learn these 150 words?

Not as a list to cram the week before the exam. The words that stick are the ones you meet repeatedly, inside sentences, in context — which is exactly what graded reading is built for. A short HSK 1 story naturally reuses these same 150 words over and over, so instead of memorizing 我想喝水 as an isolated example sentence, you meet the pattern a dozen times across different stories until it’s automatic.

A simple loop that works:

1. Read one short HSK 1 graded story a day where you recognize most of the words.
2. Notice the patterns, not just the words — 是, 有, 想 + verb, 吗 for questions.
3. Save new words to spaced repetition (SRS) only after you’ve met them in context, not before.
4. Say the example sentences out loud to lock in tones alongside meaning.

We cover why this beats flashcard-only memorization in how to learn Chinese by reading, and the full week-by-week plan for pairing this list with grammar and listening in our HSK 1 study plan.

This is the loop Coco Chinese is built around: HSK 1 stories that recycle this exact 150-word list naturally, with native Beijing audio, tap-to-translate pinyin, and built-in SRS — so you meet these words in real sentences instead of a flat list. Read one story a day and the list above stops being something you memorize and starts being something you just know.

What’s next after the HSK 1 vocabulary list?

Once these 150 words feel familiar, HSK 2 roughly doubles the load to 300 cumulative words, still concrete and everyday. For the exact character counts behind these word totals, see how many characters you need per HSK level, and if you’re unsure whether your test centre runs the old or new standard, HSK 3.0 vs HSK 2.0 walks through every difference with numbers.