HSK 3 vocabulary list
HSK 3 adds 298 new words, bringing the cumulative total to about 600. That is the level where you can handle most daily situations, opinions in simple terms. Every word below links to its full dictionary entry — meaning, the characters it is built from, and example sentences.
A word list is not a syllabus. These 298 words are not independent: most HSK 3 words are built from characters and patterns introduced below this level, which is why drilling a list top-to-bottom stalls so often. The levels are a dependency chain, not six equal buckets.
All 298 HSK 3 words
| Word | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 变化 | biàn huà | (intransitive) to change; to vary; change; variation |
| 别人 | bié ren | other people; others; other person |
| 表示 | biǎo shì | to express; to show; to say |
| 表演 | biǎo yǎn | play; show; performance |
| 半 | bàn | half; semi-; incomplete |
| 办法 | bàn fǎ | means; method; way (of doing sth) |
| 办公室 | bàn gōng shì | office; business premises; bureau |
| 被 | bèi | quilt; to cover (with); (literary) to suffer (a misfortune) |
| 必须 | bì xū | to have to; must; compulsory |
| 鼻子 | bí zi | nose |
| 班 | Bān | surname Ban; team; class; grade; (military) squad |
| 搬 | bān | to move (i.e. relocate oneself); to move (sth relatively heavy or bulky); to shift |
| 帮忙 | bāng máng | to help; to lend a hand; to do a favor |
| 包 | Bāo | surname Bao; to cover; to wrap |
| 北方 | běi fāng | north; the northern part a country; China north of the Yellow River |
| 宾馆 | bīn guǎn | guesthouse; lodge; hotel |
| 冰箱 | bīng xiāng | icebox; freezer cabinet; refrigerator |
| 把 | bǎ | to hold; to grasp; to hold a baby in position to help it urinate or defecate; handlebar |
| 饱 | bǎo | to eat till full; satisfied |
| 比较 | bǐ jiào | to compare; to contrast; comparatively |
| 比赛 | bǐ sài | competition (sports etc); match; to compete |
| 差 | chà | to fall short of; poor; lacking; (literary) a little; somewhat; slightly |
| 衬衫 | chèn shān | shirt; blouse |
| 成绩 | chéng jì | achievement; performance records; grades |
| 城市 | chéng shì | city; town |
| 迟到 | chí dào | to arrive late |
| 厨房 | chú fáng | kitchen |
| 除了 | chú le | besides; apart from (... also...); in addition to |
| 超市 | chāo shì | supermarket (abbr. for 超级市场) |
| 出现 | chū xiàn | to appear; to arise; to emerge |
| 春 | chūn | old variant of 春; surname Chun; spring (season) |
| 菜单 | cài dān | menu |
| 才 | cái | ability; talent; sb of a certain type; a capable individual |
| 层 | céng | to pile on top of one another; layer; stratum; floor (of a building); story |
| 词语 | cí yǔ | word (general term including monosyllables through to short phrases); term (e.g. technical term); expression |
| 参加 | cān jiā | to participate; to take part; to join |
| 聪明 | cōng ming | intelligent; clever; bright |
| 草 | cǎo | variant of 草; grass; straw |
| 电梯 | diàn tī | elevator; escalator |
| 电子 | diàn zǐ | electronic; electron (particle physics) |
| 段 | Duàn | surname Duan; paragraph; section |
| 锻炼 | duàn liàn | to toughen; to temper; to engage in physical exercise |
| 多么 | duō me | how (wonderful etc); what (a great idea etc); however (difficult it may be etc) |
| 短 | duǎn | short; brief; to lack |
| 带 | dài | band; belt; girdle |
| 蛋糕 | dàn gāo | cake |
| 地 | dì | earth; ground; field; place; land; (de) -ly; structural particle used before a verb or adjective, linking it to a preced |
| 地方 | dì fāng | region; regional (away from the central administration); local |
| 地铁 | dì tiě | underground railway; subway; subway train |
| 地图 | dì tú | map |
| 动物 | dòng wù | animal |
| 担心 | dān xīn | anxious; worried; uneasy |
| 当然 | dāng rán | only natural; as it should be; certainly |
| 灯 | dēng | lamp; light; lantern |
| 低 | dī | low; beneath; to lower (one's head) |
| 东 | Dōng | surname Dong; east; host (i.e. sitting on east side of guest) |
| 冬 | dōng | winter; surname Dong; (onom.) beating a drum |
| 打算 | dǎ suàn | to plan; to intend; to calculate |
| 打扫 | dǎ sǎo | to clean; to sweep |
| 放 | fàng | to put; to place; to release |
| 放心 | fàng xīn | to feel relieved; to feel reassured; to be at ease |
| 附近 | fù jìn | nearby; neighboring; (in the) vicinity (of); neighborhood |
| 复习 | fù xí | to review; revision; variant of 复习 |
| 发烧 | fā shāo | to have a high temperature (from illness); to have a fever |
| 发现 | fā xiàn | to notice; to become aware of; to discover; to find; to detect; a discovery |
| 方便 | fāng biàn | convenient; suitable; to facilitate |
| 分 | fēn | to divide; to separate; to distribute; to allocate; to distinguish (good and bad) |
| 过去 | guò qù | (in the) past; former; previous |
| 国家 | guó jiā | country; nation; state |
| 刮 | guā | to scrape; to blow; to shave |
| 关 | Guān | surname Guan; mountain pass; to close; to shut; to turn off |
| 关系 | guān xi | relation; relationship; to concern |
| 关心 | guān xīn | to be concerned about; to care about |
| 关于 | guān yú | pertaining to; concerning; with regard to |
| 果汁 | guǒ zhī | fruit juice |
| 故事 | gù shì | old practice; narrative; story; tale |
| 干净 | gān jìng | clean; neat |
| 刚才 | gāng cái | just now; a moment ago; just now (variant of 刚才) |
| 跟 | gēn | heel; to follow closely; to go with |
| 根据 | gēn jù | according to; based on; basis |
| 更 | gēng | to change or replace; to experience; one of the five two-hour periods into which the night was formerly divided |
| 公园 | gōng yuán | park (for public recreation) |
| 敢 | gǎn | to dare; daring; (polite) may I venture |
| 感冒 | gǎn mào | to catch cold; (common) cold; (coll.) to be interested in (often used in the negative) |
| 画 | huà | to draw; to paint; picture; painting; to draw (a line) (variant of 划) |
| 坏 | huài | bad; spoiled; broken |
| 换 | huàn | to exchange; to change (clothes etc); to substitute |
| 环境 | huán jìng | environment; circumstances; surroundings |
| 黄 | Huáng | surname Huang or Hwang; yellow; pornographic |
| 会议 | huì yì | meeting; conference |
| 或者 | huò zhě | or; possibly; maybe; perhaps |
| 花 | Huā | surname Hua; flower; blossom |
| 花园 | huā yuán | garden |
| 害怕 | hài pà | to be afraid; to be scared |
| 还是 | hái shi | still (as before); had better; unexpectedly |
| 河 | hé | river |
| 护照 | hù zhào | passport |
| 黑板 | hēi bǎn | blackboard |
| 健康 | jiàn kāng | health; healthy |
| 见面 | jiàn miàn | to meet; to see each other |
| 教 | Jiào | surname Jiao; to teach; religion |
| 借 | jiè | to lend; to borrow; by means of |
| 结婚 | jié hūn | to marry; to get married |
| 节目 | jié mù | program; item (on a program) |
| 节日 | jié rì | holiday; festival |
| 结束 | jié shù | termination; to finish; to end |
| 旧 | jiù | old; opposite: new 新; former |
| 接 | jiē | to receive; to answer (the phone); to meet or welcome sb |
| 街道 | jiē dào | street; subdistrict; residential district |
| 解决 | jiě jué | to solve; to resolve; to settle (a problem); to eliminate; to wipe out (an enemy, bandits etc) |
| 检查 | jiǎn chá | inspection; to examine; to inspect |
| 简单 | jiǎn dān | simple; not complicated |
| 讲 | jiǎng | to speak; to explain; to negotiate |
| 脚 | jiǎo | foot; leg (of an animal or an object); base (of an object) |
| 久 | jiǔ | (long) time; (long) duration of time |
| 角 | Jué | surname Jue; angle; corner |
| 决定 | jué dìng | to decide (to do something); to resolve; decision |
| 记得 | jì de | to remember |
| 季节 | jì jié | time; season; period |
| 极 | jí | extremely; pole (geography, physics); utmost |
| 句子 | jù zi | sentence |
| 机会 | jī huì | opportunity; chance; occasion |
| 几乎 | jī hū | almost; nearly; practically |
| 经常 | jīng cháng | frequently; constantly; regularly; often; day-to-day; everyday; daily |
| 经过 | jīng guò | to pass; to go through; process |
| 经理 | jīng lǐ | manager; director |
| 举行 | jǔ xíng | to hold (a meeting, ceremony etc) |
| 筷子 | kuài zi | chopsticks |
| 刻 | kè | quarter (hour); moment; to carve |
| 客人 | kè rén | visitor; guest; customer |
| 裤子 | kù zi | variant of 裤子, trousers; pants; trousers |
| 渴 | kě | thirsty |
| 可爱 | kě ài | adorable; cute; lovely |
| 空调 | kōng tiáo | air conditioning; air conditioner (including units that have a heating mode) |
| 哭 | kū | to cry; to weep |
| 口 | kǒu | mouth; classifier for things with mouths (people, domestic animals, cannons, wells etc); classifier for bites or mouthfu |
| 练习 | liàn xí | to practice; exercise; drill |
| 辆 | liàng | classifier for vehicles |
| 脸 | liǎn | face |
| 了解 | liǎo jiě | to understand; to realize; to find out |
| 蓝 | Lán | surname Lan; blue; indigo plant |
| 历史 | lì shǐ | history |
| 离开 | lí kāi | to depart; to leave |
| 邻居 | lín jū | neighbor; next door |
| 楼 | Lóu | surname Lou; house with more than 1 story; storied building |
| 老 | lǎo | prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to |
| 礼物 | lǐ wù | gift; present |
| 绿 | lǜ | green; (slang) (derived from 绿帽子) to cheat on (one's spouse or boyfriend or girlfriend) |
| 面包 | miàn bāo | bread |
| 面条 | miàn tiáo | noodles |
| 帽子 | mào zi | hat; cap; (fig.) label |
| 明白 | míng bai | clear; obvious; unequivocal |
| 马 | Mǎ | surname Ma; abbr. for Malaysia 马来西亚; horse |
| 马上 | mǎ shàng | at once; right away; immediately |
| 满意 | mǎn yì | satisfied; pleased; to one's satisfaction |
| 米 | Mǐ | surname Mi; rice; meter (classifier) |
| 年级 | nián jí | grade; year (in school, college etc) |
| 年轻 | nián qīng | young |
| 鸟 | niǎo | bird; "bird" radical in Chinese characters; (diǎo) vulgar slang variant of 屌 |
| 拿 | ná | old variant of 拿; variant of 拿; to hold |
| 南 | Nán | surname Nan; south |
| 难 | nán | difficult (to...); problem; difficulty |
| 难过 | nán guò | to feel sad; to feel unwell; (of life) to be difficult |
| 奶奶 | nǎi nai | (informal) grandma (paternal grandmother); (respectful) mistress of the house; (coll.) boobies |
| 努力 | nǔ lì | to make an effort; to try hard; to strive; hard-working; conscientious |
| 胖 | pàng | fat; plump; (pán) healthy; at ease (literary, bound form) |
| 爬山 | pá shān | to climb a mountain; to mountaineer; hiking |
| 盘子 | pán zi | tray; plate; dish |
| 啤酒 | pí jiǔ | beer (loanword) |
| 葡萄 | pú tao | grape |
| 普通话 | pǔ tōng huà | Mandarin (common language); Putonghua (common speech of the Chinese language); ordinary speech |
| 铅笔 | qiān bǐ | (lead) pencil |
| 秋 | Qiū | surname Qiu; autumn; fall |
| 骑 | qí | to sit astride; to ride (a bike, horse etc); (jì) mounted soldier; cavalryman (literary) |
| 奇怪 | qí guài | strange; odd; to marvel |
| 其实 | qí shí | actually; in fact; really |
| 其他 | qí tā | other; (sth or sb) else; the rest |
| 裙子 | qún zi | skirt |
| 清楚 | qīng chu | clear; distinct; to understand thoroughly |
| 然后 | rán hòu | then; after that; afterwards |
| 热情 | rè qíng | cordial; enthusiastic; passion |
| 认为 | rèn wéi | to believe; to think; to consider; to feel |
| 认真 | rèn zhēn | conscientious; earnest; serious |
| 容易 | róng yì | easy; straightforward; likely; liable to; apt to |
| 如果 | rú guǒ | if; in case; in the event that |
| 刷 | shuā | to brush; to paint; to daub |
| 双 | Shuāng | surname Shuang; two; double |
| 水平 | shuǐ píng | level (of achievement etc); standard; horizontal |
| 上网 | shàng wǎng | to go online; to connect to the Internet; (of a document etc) to be uploaded to the Internet |
| 世界 | shì jiè | world |
| 瘦 | shòu | thin; to lose weight; (of clothing) tight |
| 树 | shù | tree; to cultivate; to set up |
| 数学 | shù xué | mathematics; mathematical |
| 生气 | shēng qì | to get angry; to take offense; angry |
| 声音 | shēng yīn | voice; sound |
| 舒服 | shū fu | comfortable; feeling well |
| 叔叔 | shū shu | father's younger brother; uncle; Taiwan pr. [shú shu] |
| 使 | shǐ | to make; to cause; to enable |
| 虽然 | suī rán | although; even though (often used correlatively with 是 or 是 etc) |
| 司机 | sī jī | chauffeur; driver |
| 伞 | sǎn | umbrella; parasol; damask silk |
| 甜 | tián | sweet |
| 条 | tiáo | strip; item; article |
| 腿 | tuǐ | leg; hip bone; old variant of 腿 |
| 太阳 | tài yang | sun; abbr. for 太阳穴 |
| 糖 | táng | sugar; sweets; candy |
| 特别 | tè bié | unusual; special; very; especially; particularly; expressly; for a specific purpose |
| 疼 | téng | (it) hurts; sore; to love dearly |
| 提高 | tí gāo | to raise; to increase; to improve |
| 同事 | tóng shì | colleague; co-worker |
| 同意 | tóng yì | to agree; to consent; to approve |
| 头发 | tóu fa | hair (on the head) |
| 图书馆 | tú shū guǎn | library |
| 突然 | tū rán | sudden; abrupt; unexpected |
| 体育 | tǐ yù | sports; physical education |
| 万 | wàn | ten thousand; a great number; (mò) surname Mo |
| 忘记 | wàng jì | to forget |
| 完成 | wán chéng | to complete; to accomplish |
| 位 | wèi | position; location; place |
| 为了 | wèi le | for; for the purpose of; in order to |
| 为什么 | wèi shén me | why?; for what reason? |
| 文化 | wén huà | culture; civilization; cultural |
| 碗 | wǎn | variant of 碗; variant of 碗; variant of 碗 |
| 夏 | Xià | the Xia or Hsia dynasty c. 2000 BC; Xia of the Sixteen Kingdoms (407-432); surname Xia |
| 像 | xiàng | to resemble; to be like; to look as if |
| 校长 | xiào zhǎng | (college, university) president; headmaster |
| 鞋 | xié | shoe; variant of 鞋 |
| 熊猫 | xióng māo | panda |
| 先 | xiān | early; prior; former |
| 香蕉 | xiāng jiāo | banana |
| 相同 | xiāng tóng | identical; same |
| 相信 | xiāng xìn | to be convinced (that sth is true); to believe; to accept sth as true |
| 小心 | xiǎo xīn | to be careful; to take care |
| 选择 | xuǎn zé | to select; to pick; choice |
| 信 | xìn | letter; mail; to trust |
| 兴趣 | xìng qù | interest (desire to know about sth); interest (thing in which one is interested); hobby |
| 习惯 | xí guàn | habit; custom; usual practice |
| 行李箱 | xíng li xiāng | suitcase; baggage compartment; overhead bin |
| 西 | Xī | the West; abbr. for Spain 牙; Spanish |
| 新闻 | xīn wén | news |
| 新鲜 | xīn xiān | fresh (experience, food etc); freshness; novel |
| 需要 | xū yào | to need; to want; to demand; to require; needs |
| 洗手间 | xǐ shǒu jiān | toilet; lavatory; washroom |
| 洗澡 | xǐ zǎo | to bathe; to take a shower |
| 愿意 | yuàn yì | to wish; to want; ready |
| 越 | Yuè | generic word for peoples or states of south China or south Asia at different historical periods; abbr. for Vietnam 越南; t |
| 月亮 | yuè liang | the moon |
| 爷爷 | yé ye | (coll.) father's father; paternal grandfather |
| 银行 | yín háng | bank |
| 用 | yòng | to use; to employ; to have to |
| 又 | yòu | (once) again; also; both... and... |
| 游戏 | yóu xì | game; to play |
| 遇到 | yù dào | to meet; to run into; to come across |
| 云 | yún | (classical) to say; surname Yun; abbr. for Yunnan Province 云南省 |
| 要求 | yāo qiú | to request; to require; requirement |
| 一边 | yī biān | one side; either side; on the one hand |
| 一般 | yī bān | same; ordinary; so-so |
| 一定 | yī dìng | surely; certainly; necessarily |
| 一共 | yī gòng | altogether |
| 一会儿 | yī huìr | a moment; a while; in a moment |
| 一样 | yī yàng | same; like; equal to |
| 一直 | yī zhí | straight (in a straight line); continuously; always; all the way through |
| 音乐 | yīn yuè | music |
| 应该 | yīng gāi | ought to; should; must |
| 眼镜 | yǎn jìng | spectacles; eyeglasses |
| 以后 | yǐ hòu | after; later; afterwards |
| 以前 | yǐ qián | before; formerly; previous |
| 以为 | yǐ wéi | to think (i.e. to take it to be true that ...) (Usually there is an implication that the notion is mistaken – except whe |
| 影响 | yǐng xiǎng | influence; effect; to influence |
| 有名 | yǒu míng | famous; well-known |
| 站 | zhàn | station; to stand; to halt |
| 照顾 | zhào gu | to take care of; to show consideration; to attend to |
| 照片 | zhào piàn | photograph; picture |
| 照相机 | zhào xiàng jī | camera |
| 着急 | zháo jí | to worry; to feel anxious; to feel a sense of urgency; to be in a hurry; Taiwan pr. [zhāo jí] |
| 重要 | zhòng yào | important; significant; major |
| 祝 | Zhù | surname Zhu; to pray for; to wish (sb bon voyage, happy birthday etc) |
| 注意 | zhù yì | to take note of; to pay attention to |
| 中间 | zhōng jiān | the middle; the inside; in the middle; within; between; among; during; in the meantime |
| 终于 | zhōng yú | at last; in the end; finally |
| 周末 | zhōu mò | weekend |
| 只 | zhǐ | only; merely; just |
| 种 | zhǒng | seed; species; kind |
| 主要 | zhǔ yào | main; principal; major |
| 最近 | zuì jìn | recently; soon; nearest |
| 作业 | zuò yè | school assignment; homework; work |
| 作用 | zuò yòng | to act on; to affect; action |
| 字典 | zì diǎn | Chinese character dictionary (containing entries for single characters, contrasted with a 词典, which has entries for word |
| 自己 | zì jǐ | oneself; one's own |
| 总是 | zǒng shì | always |
| 爱好 | ài hào | to like; to be fond of; to take pleasure in; to be keen on; interest; hobby |
| 饿 | è | to be hungry; hungry; to starve (sb) |
| 而且 | ér qiě | (not only ...) but also; moreover; in addition |
| 啊 | ā | interjection of surprise; Ah!; Oh! |
| 阿姨 | ā yí | maternal aunt; step-mother; childcare worker |
| 安静 | ān jìng | quiet; peaceful; calm |
| 耳朵 | ěr duo | ear; handle (on a cup) |
| 矮 | ǎi | low; short (in length) |
Frequently asked questions
How many words are in HSK 3?
HSK 3 introduces 298 new words. Counting everything below it, you are expected to know roughly 600 words by the end of the level.
How long does it take to learn HSK 3 vocabulary?
At fifteen new words a day with spaced review, the 298 new words take about 20 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.
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