HSK 2 vocabulary list

All 147 words · pinyin and English · free, no signup

• HSK 1
• HSK 2
• HSK 3
• HSK 4
• HSK 5
• HSK 6
• HSK 7–9

In the current six-level HSK (HSK 2.0), HSK 2 adds 147 new words, bringing the cumulative total to about 300. That is the level where you can handle everyday exchanges — shopping, directions, daily routine. Every word below links to its full dictionary entry — meaning, the characters it is built from, and example sentences.

This is the old six-level list. The new HSK 3.0, first sat officially on 13 December 2026, has a different list at this level: the new HSK 2 vocabulary list.

Know these already? Take the free HSK 2 test: 20 questions, scored on the page, no signup.

A word list is not a syllabus. These 147 words are not independent: most HSK 2 words are built from words and characters you meet below this level, which is why drilling a list from the top stalls so often. The levels build on each other rather than sitting in six equal buckets — and the whole climb takes longer than most guides admit.

Where HSK 2 actually starts

Chinese words hold each other up. 白 (bái, white) is HSK 2, and 明白 (míng bai, to understand) is HSK 3 — most of the way free once 白 is solid. 但是 (dàn shì, but) is HSK 2, and 不但 (bù dàn, not only) sits two levels above it and stays guesswork until 但是 is automatic. Meet them in the wrong order and you are memorising. Meet them in the right one and you are mostly recognising.

So we mapped which words hold up which — that map is the graph in GraphChinese — and it decides what you are handed next. Sorted by pinyin, HSK 2 opens with 吧. Sorted by what you are ready for, it opens like this:

1. 1
   Speed, Manner and Degree 8 words

   快kuài 慢màn 非常fēi cháng 最zuì 还hái 也yě 就jiù 别bié

2. 2
   Emotions and States 9 words

   快乐kuài lè 笑xiào 累lèi 忙máng 错cuò 真zhēn 希望xī wàng 觉得jué de 欢迎huān yíng

3. 3
   Health and Weather 8 words

   生病shēng bìng 生日shēng rì 晴qíng 阴yīn 雪xuě 要yào 可以kě yǐ 可能kě néng

4. 4
   Conjunctions and Discourse Adverbs 12 words

   但是dàn shì 所以suǒ yǐ 因为yīn wèi 从cóng 向xiàng 为wèi 比bǐ 离lí 一起yī qǐ 正在zhèng zài 着zhe 得de

5. 5
   Daily Actions 10 words

   起床qǐ chuáng 上班shàng bān 开始kāi shǐ 完wán 走zǒu 出chū 到dào 找zhǎo 穿chuān 洗xǐ

6. 6
   Time Expressions 9 words

   早上zǎo shang 晚上wǎn shang 去年qù nián 小时xiǎo shí 时间shí jiān 第一dì yī 每měi 再zài 已经yǐ jīng

All 147 HSK 2 words

Sorted by pinyin, the way the official list is published — so you can check yourself against it. Tap any word for its full entry.

Frequently asked questions

How many words are in HSK 2?

HSK 2 introduces 147 new words. Counting everything below it, you are expected to know roughly 300 words by the end of the level.

How long does it take to learn HSK 2 vocabulary?

At fifteen new words a day with spaced review, the 147 new words take about 10 days. The real constraint is rarely how fast you can meet a word — it is whether the material underneath is automatic enough for the new word to attach to anything. That is why learners who skip levels end up re-learning them.

Is this the 2021 nine-band list?

No — this is the six-level HSK 2.0 vocabulary, which is what the exams most learners sit still follow. The HSK levels page explains how the nine-band standard relates to it, and the band 7–9 list is the level above.