Chinese word for complete

(completed action marker) / (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now) / (modal particle intensifying preceding clause)

HSK 1

to finish / to be over / whole / complete / entire

HSK 2

to complete; to accomplish

HSK 3

complete; whole / totally; entirely

HSK 4

complete / intact

HSK 5

thorough / thoroughly / complete

HSK 5

to complete a contract / to reach a deal

HSK 6

complete / comprehensive

HSK 6

ample / complete / hundred percent / a pure shade (of some color)

HSK 6

to associate (cognitively) / to make an associative connection / mental association / word prediction and auto-complete functions of input method editing programs

HSK 6

to finish / to end / to complete

HSK 6

faultless / complete / perfect / to leave nothing to be desired

HSK 6

to complete a construction project

HSK 6

to complete a set in mahjong or playing cards

that level or higher / that amount or more / the above-mentioned / (used to indicate that one has completed one’s remarks) That is all.

all / whole / entire / every / complete

omnibus / complete works (of a writer or artist)

to succeed / to finish / to complete / to accomplish / to become / to turn into / to be all right / OK! / one tenth

all-inclusive / complete / comprehensive collection

as soon as / once (an action has been completed)

exactly / in good order / whole / complete / entire / in order / orderly / to repair / to mend / to renovate / (coll.) to fix sb / to give sb a hard time / to mess with sb

to come down / (completed action marker) / (after verb of motion, indicates motion down and towards us, also fig.) / (indicates continuation from the past towards us) / to be harvested (of crops) / to be over (of a period of time) / to go among the masses (said of leaders)

to finish / to conclude / completed

focus / with complete devotion / stubbornly

non-Han people, esp. from central Asia / reckless / outrageous / what? / why? / to complete a winning hand at mahjong (also written 和)

to form a complete set / compatible / matching / complementary

to complete a project

prescription / cooking recipe / formulation / completing the square (to solve quadratic equation, math.)

the whole of / to finish / to complete / complete / full / finished

A Dream of Red Mansions (first completed edition 1791) by Cao Xueqin 曹雪芹, one of the four great novels

all / entire / complete

forming a complete set / complementing one another

to come to an agreement / to complete negotiations

to finish work / to complete a project

not knowing what to do (idiom); at one’s wits’ end / embarrassed and at a complete loss

to help sb accomplish his aim / to help sb succeed / to complete / to make whole / to round off

a neglected branch (of arts, science, sports etc) / fig. a complete unknown who wins a competition

completed examination paper / answer sheet / CL: 份, 張｜张

sky and the earth turning upside down (idiom); fig. complete confusion / everything turned on its head

complete picture / full view

sky and the earth turning upside down (idiom); fig. complete confusion / everything turned on its head

in a mess / scattered about / in complete disorder

muddled and completely collapsing (idiom); in an awful condition / complete shambles / a total mess

to govern / to have complete control over / to be in command of

to finish school, esp. a short course / to complete a course / (of a company) to cease operations

all ready / available / complete

total defeat of an army (idiom); fig. a complete wipeout

every kind / every variety under the sun / a complete gamut

forward delivery apartment / unfinished housing to be paid for in advance by the buyer and then completed within certain time frame

chaotic / topsy turvy / a complete mess

perfect; complete

to make a circuit / to circle / circle / circumference / lap / cycle / complete / all / all over / thorough / to help financially

complete and accurate

all split up and in pieces (idiom); disunity (in an organization) / complete lack of unity / to disintegrate / falling apart / to be at sixes and sevens

to lose one’s standing / to have one’s reputation swept away / a complete defeat and fall from grace

to join the two sections (of a linear structure: bridge, dike etc) to complete its construction

meticulous / thorough / comprehensive / complete / detailed

to arrange / to settle / to complete / to carry through

complete

complete nonsense (idiom)

chaos / bungle / complete mess / shambles

to finish / to complete the task

to have completed the mourning period (traditional) / to have served one’s time

a complete contrast / totally different

to suffer a crushing defeat (idiom) / in a pitiful state / in a complete mess / to roll (with laughter)

(lit.) a pot of porridge / (fig.) a complete mess

complete rest (after an illness)

to complete a draft / to put out a manuscript

complete change from the normal state (idiom); quite uncharacteristic / entirely outside the norm / out of character

complete / meet unexpectedly / see

complete and beautiful / to be perfect (idiom)

to complete the last stage of work / to round off

the sparrow may be small but all its vital organs are there (idiom) / small but complete in every detail

complete / full

complete / whole

unabridged / complete book

work point (measure of work completed in a rural commune in the PRC during the planned economy era)

full / complete / all of

to complete / to prepare

to take complete charge (idiom)

to complete a course of study (old) / to graduate

to have never met sb before (idiom); entirely unacquainted / a complete stranger / not to know sb from Adam

lit. closed gourd / fig. enigma / complete mystery / taciturn person

complete change (idiom); facelift / We’re in a wholly new situation.

(of a project) to be completed

to explain all the details / complete narrative

lit. to acknowledge the bandit as one’s father (idiom); fig. a complete betrayal / to sell oneself to the enemy

cups and dishes in complete disorder (idiom); after a riotous drinking party

(coll.) complete / comprehensive

complete set

with no regard for law or discipline (idiom); flouting the law and disregarding all rules / in complete disorder

it is essential to (complete a project on time, be thorough etc)

complete change from the old rut (idiom); dramatic change of direction / a volte-face / to change old practices

all around / omnidirectional / complete / holistic / comprehensive

(have sb in) the palm of one’s hand / fig. (under) one’s complete control

«he failed to complete his quest before death» (line from the poem «The Premier of Shu» 蜀相 by Du Fu 杜甫)

to complete the training course (Tw)

to complete the year’s harvest

(after completing a game of chess) to replay the game, analyzing the players’ moves / (stock market) to resume trading

complete / finish

出租车 chūzūchē… 睡觉 shuìjiào… 怎么样 zěnmeyàng…

Do you know those words yet? They’re some of the HSK 1 vocabulary words. If you’re going to take the test, it’s time to memorize them!

If you don’t know, HSK stands for Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (汉语水平考试), meaning “Mandarin Chinese Proficiency Test”. It’s the world’s most well-known and acknowledged test for Chinese proficiency, with six competence levels. HSK 6 is the hardest level, considered near-fluent. HSK 1 is the easiest level, covering the basic level of Chinese.

And if you’re looking to test your skills and see where you’re at in Chinese, then HSK is a great place to try it out. Even though HSK 1 is the most basic formal Chinese test, passing the test is still an achievement worth celebrating. So here’s your quick guide to learning the necessary HSK 1 vocabulary words.

Required Vocabulary for HSK 1 Test

So, how many Chinese words do you need to learn to pass the HSK 1 test?

According to Hanban, the HSK test organizer, to pass HSK Level 1, you need to know 150 vocabulary words precisely. These words don’t change between tests, and you can expect to see them on any given HSK 1 test (though not all 150 words will necessarily appear in one test).

Here’s the official guideline from Hanban.

• HSK1: 150 words
• HSK2: 300 words
• HSK3: 600 words
• HSK4: 1200 words
• HSK5: 2500 words
• HSK6: 5000 words

What Else to Expect on HSK 1 Test

HSK 1 test is designed for basic Chinese learners. In HSK 1, Pinyin (Mandarin romanization) is provided along with Chinese characters for all questions on the test paper, and there is no writing section, meaning you don’t really need to know any character to pass the test (of course you’ll need to be totally comfortable reading Pinyin at least).

You do, however, need to be able to understand simple conversations from daily life constructed with these 150 required vocabulary words, and some basic Chinese grammar to pass HSK 1.

HSK 1 Vocabulary List – the 150 Words You Need to Know for HSK Level 1 Test

I will preface the list by saying that this is not meant to be the “generic word list for beginners” or “the most common Chinese words” by frequency. Instead, this is a vocabulary list crafted specifically for passing the HSK 1 test. Once you’ve got the 150 required words, you can start learning vocabulary words that are most relevant to your own personal daily speech.

Alright, so let’s start learning the HSK 1 vocabulary!

I’ve organized these words based on category (e.g. numbers, time, people, and places) because Chinese words are easiest to learn when you associate them with related words.

Enjoy the list!

11 Chinese Words for Numbers

We’ll start with the numbers.

Chinese numbers are important to know. They are straightforward and extremely regular. Once you know how to count to 10, you can instantly count up to 99 without any need for extra memorization. (In case you don’t, read here)

Chinese	Pinyin	English
零	líng	zero
一	yī	one
二	èr	two
三	sān	three
四	sì	four
五	wǔ	five
六	liù	six
七	qī	seven
八	bā	eight
九	jiǔ	nine
十	shí	ten

7 Chinese Pronouns

Chinese pronouns don’t change form according to whether they are the subject (doer of the action, e.g. “I”) or object (undergoer of the action, e.g. “me”).

Note while “he”, “she” (or “him”, “her”) are represented by two different Chinese characters, they are pronounced in exactly the same way.

Pay attention to 这儿 (zhèr) – “here”, and 那儿 (nàr) – “there” as well. People in southern China often use 这里 (zhèli) and 那里 (nàli) instead as part of the regional differences (all these words are readily understood in China though).

Chinese	Pinyin	English
我	wǒ	I or me
你	nǐ	you (singular)
他	tā	he or him
她	tā	she or her
我们	wǒmen	we or me
这/这儿	zhè/zhèr	this/here
那/那儿	nà/nàr	that/there

7 Chinese Question Words

Question words like “what”, “where”, “who” are technically pronouns too. I’ve listed them separately here because I would like to draw your attention to how WH Questions are raised in Chinese.

Essentially, the word order of a WH question in Chinese stays in line with the basic Chinese structure S-V-O (subject-verb-object), that is, you need to keep the word order of the statement and change the “asked part” to the corresponding question word.

This is a key grammar point in HSK 1 test. If you are not sure how to craft a WH question, read here.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
哪/哪儿	nǎ/nǎr	which/where
谁	shéi	who
什么	shénme	what
多少	duōshao	how many or how much
几	jǐ	how many or how much
怎么	zěnme	how
怎么样	zěnmeyàng	how about

14 Chinese Words for Time

These time words required by HSK 1 are often used together with numbers. You can pair numbers up with words like 月 (yuè) to say months of the year, like 一月 (yī yuè) – “January”, or 星期 (xīngqī) to say days of the week, like 星期二 (xīngqī èr) – “Tuesday”.

Note, the time in Chinese is expressed quite differently than in English. For instance, the elements of the dates must be named in ascending order:  year + month + day, that is, 年 (nián) + 月 (yuè) + 日 (rì).

Words like 上午 (shàngwǔ), 下午 (xiàwǔ), if used, also need to be placed before the time to depict the period accurately.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
现在	xiànzài	now
今天	jīntiān	today
明天	míngtiān	tomorrow
昨天	zuótiān	yesterday
上午	shàngwǔ	morning
中午	zhōngwǔ	noon
下午	xiàwǔ	afternoon
点	diǎn	o’clock
分钟	fēnzhōng	minute
年	nián	year
月	yuè	month
日	rì	day
星期	xīngqī	week
时候	shíhou	a certain point in time

36 Chinese Words for People & Things

HSK 1 expects you to know 36 nouns related to people and things to pass. Some of them are very important in Chinese culture, such as 茶 (chá) – “tea”, and 米饭 (mǐfàn) – “rice”, so they pop up a lot.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
人	rén	person or people
名字	míngzì	name
妈妈	māma	mom
爸爸	bàba	dad
儿子	érzi	son
女儿	nǚ’ér	daughter
朋友	péngyǒu	friend
先生	xiānsheng	Mr or sir
小姐	xiǎojiě	Miss
老师	lǎoshī	teacher
学生	xuésheng	student
同学	tóngxué	schoolmate
医生	yīshēng	doctor
东西	dōngxi	thing
钱	qián	money
水	shuǐ	water
茶	chá	tea
菜	cài	dish
米饭	mǐfàn	(cooked) rice
衣服	yīfu	clothes
书	shū	book
桌子	zhuōzi	table or desk
椅子	yǐzi	chair
水果	shuǐguǒ	fruit
苹果	píngguǒ	apple
杯子	bēizi	cup or glass
电视	diànshì	TV
电脑	diànnǎo	computer
电影	diànyǐng	movie
飞机	fēijī	plane
出租车	chūzūchē	taxi
猫	māo	cat
狗	gǒu	dog
天气	tiānqì	weather
字	zì	character
汉语	Hànyǔ	Chinese (language)

13 Chinese Words for Places & Directions

The following 13 words for places and directions are the ones you’ll encounter in HSK 1 test. Of course, they are equally useful outside the realm of testing to get by in China.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
中国	Zhōngguó	China
北京	Běijīng	Beijing
家	jiā	home or family
学校	xuéxiào	school
饭馆	fànguǎn	restaurant
商店	shāngdiàn	shop
医院	yīyuàn	hospital
火车站	huǒchēzhàn	train station
上	shàng	on, above or last
下	xià	under, below or next
前面	qiánmiàn	front
后面	hòumiàn	back
里	lǐ	inside

5 Chinese Measure Words

The use of measure words is unique to the Chinese language. There are more than one hundred measure words used for different kinds of things in daily Chinese. Luckily, to pass HSK 1, you only need to learn five of them.

In real life, you can get by for quite a while by just using the most common, general-purpose measure word 个 (gè). It may not be strictly correct (works like 30% of the time), but you’ll be understood. (or, you can learn the 15 most common Chinese measure words in this article)

Chinese	Pinyin	English
个	gè	generic measure word
块	kuài	basic monetary unit of China
本	běn	for books
岁	suì	year (of age)
些	xiē	some

31 Chinese Verbs

In the HSK 1 test, you’ll be quizzed on the following 31 verbs. Many of the verbs have multiple meanings, especially when combined with other words. Don’t worry about that for now, but just know there maybe – and usually are, more ways to use them once you get farther in your Chinese studies. For now, I simply included their most common meanings you need to know for taking HSK 1.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
做	zuò	to do
是	shì	to be
在	zài	to be in
有	yǒu	to have
住	zhù	to live or to stay
来	lái	to come
去	qù	to go
回	huí	to return
想	xiǎng	to think
吃	chī	to eat
喝	hē	to drink
说话	shuōhuà	to speak
看	kàn	to look or to watch
看见	kànjiàn	to see
听	tīng	to listen
叫	jiào	to call
买	mǎi	to buy
开	kāi	to drive or to open
坐	zuò	to sit
读	dú	to read
写	xiě	to write
打电话	dǎ diànhuà	to make a phone call
认识	rènshi	to know
学习	xuéxí	to learn
工作	gōngzuò	to work
睡觉	shuìjiào	to sleep
喜欢	xǐhuan	to like
爱	ài	to love
会	huì	can (to know how to)
能	néng	can (to be able to)
下雨	xià yǔ	to rain

14 Chinese Adjectives and Adverbs

Coming up next are the most basic Chinese adjectives and adverbs to describe things and actions. You will most likely be quizzed on how to describe things on the HSK 1 test. To do that, simply use 很 (hěn), the default connecting word to link a noun to an adjective, like 我很好 (wǒ hěn hǎo). The literal meaning of 很 (hěn) – “very” is very weak in such cases.  

Another grammar point you’ll definitely need to know for the HSK 1 test would be the use of 不 (bù) vs 没 (méi). Bear in mind that 不 (bù) works with almost all the nouns and adjectives in Chinese, but to negate the verb 有 (yǒu), you have to use the negating word 没 (méi). That’s the only exception.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
好	hǎo	good
大	dà	big
小	xiǎo	small
多	duō	many
少	shǎo	few
热	rè	hot
冷	lěng	cold
漂亮	piàoliang	pretty
高兴	gāoxìng	happy
很	hěn	very
太	tài	too…
都	dōu	both or all
不	bù	not
没	méi	not

4 Chinese Particles

Chinese particles are those function words that don’t have a concrete meaning on their own, but are used together with another word, phrase, or sentence to serve a grammatical purpose. To pass HSK 1, you need to know the following four basic particles.

Pay special attention to the question particle 吗 (ma). Don’t think of it as the question mark in Chinese. Use it only for yes-no questions.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
的	de	possession particle
了	le	aspect particle
吗	ma	question particle
呢	ne	question particle

1 Chinese Conjunction

和 (hé) is the only conjunction you need to know for HSK 1. However, be aware of the pitfall! It is much less versatile than the English “and”, and should only be used to connect nouns in Chinese. Never attempt to connect adjectives, verbs, phrases, or sentences with 和 (hé)! (Find out what you should do instead with this article)

Chinese	Pinyin	English
和	hé	and

7 Chinese Expressions

Finally, there are seven basic expressions that you must master for HSK Level 1 test (you’ll most likely hear them in the Listening Section).

Pay attention to the word 请 (qǐng). In Chinese, you can only use the word at the beginning of a sentence to start a request, not at the end. That is, you can say things like “please sit down”, but not “sit down, please”.

Chinese	Pinyin	English
喂	wèi	hello (on the phone)
谢谢	xièxie	thanks
不客气	bú kèqi	you’re welcome
再见	zàijiàn	goodbye
请	qǐng	please…
对不起	duìbuqǐ	sorry
没关系	méi guānxi	it’s all right

HSK 1 Vocabulary Practice: The Best Way to Memorize HSK 1 Words

All right, so now you’ve seen the HSK 1 vocabulary list and know what you should study. But what’s the best way to memorize these words?

The best way to remember HSK 1 vocabulary (or any other level) is to use flashcards and create a maximum number of “exposures” to the new vocabulary in real life. Essentially, you’ll want to surround yourself with the new vocabulary, allowing the words to naturally move from short-term memory into long-term memory.

Step 1. Select and Create a Vocabulary List

Even though the HSK 1 vocabulary list is readily available for you, don’t just sit on it.

Instead, select and craft your own vocabulary list out of it by browsing our list first and then writing down the words you don’t know in a notebook. The objective here is to force yourself to see and write the words for yourself. Make them your Chinese vocabulary words.

Step 2. Use Flashcards

Flashcards are a powerful way to review Chinese words. You could do it old school and make actual, physical flashcards. Simply write down the new words in your list, with Pinyin or characters on one side, and the English definition on the other. This process itself gives you additional exposure to the unfamiliar vocabulary.

If you don’t have that much time to spare, then make use of flashcards apps such as Anki or Memrise. You can use them on desktop as well as on a mobile phone, so you can review the new words while commuting to school or work.

These apps also make use of spaced repetition – a clever algorithm that only shows you the flashcards that you’re about to forget. Sounds awesome, isn’t it?

Step 3. Get Out There and Try New Words

It’s all very well to recognize the words from vocabulary lists or flashcards, but you need to get more exposure to accurately and convincingly be able to use these words, to pass HSK 1, and speak Chinese!

So get out there and speak! Force yourself to use these new words with native Chinese speakers near where you live or online. The way native speakers respond to your shaky, early uses of new vocabulary will reinforce the meaning and usage of these words like nothing else.

If you can’t find anyone to practice with you, look up the words in a dictionary app such as Pleco and read the example sentences. These sentences will provide numerous more exposures to the words in context. You can even use Google or Baidu to identify how these Chinese words are actually used, a method that’s surprisingly effective.

Don’t miss out on our Grammar Channel! It’s a great reference resource you can go to for a quick recap/overview of grammatical structures, covering basic words in Chinese.

Bottom line: it’s important to not simply memorize Chinese words from a word list. Learn how the words are used in context, and they will more easily stick in your long-term memory.

And practice every day! Rinse and repeat until the test!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. To pass the HSK 1 test, do I have to know all the 150 words required?
Technically you don’t have to, since you won’t encounter all the 150 words required in one test, and you only need to score 120/200 to pass the test, meaning you can chance it. However, these 150 words are among the most basic, essential words you’ll need to speak Chinese. You should master them anyway and build your vocabulary from there.

2. Do I need to know how to write these words to pass the HSK?
You don’t have to write anything in the HSK 1 Test. All questions are delivered in the format of True or False, and Multiple Choices. Plus, Pinyin is provided along with Chinese characters for all questions on the test paper, meaning you don’t really need to be able to read characters to pass the test. That said, it’s still a good idea to knock out the basic Chinese characters at an early stage. Characters help you memorize vocabulary better, read with ease (making learning through native resources easier), and have a deeper understanding of how the Chinese language works. You can view the HSK 1 character list here.

What’s Next?

There are endless directions you can take for learning Chinese. Now that you’ve got the HSK 1 vocabulary, you can figure out what’s best for you and start applying it. From here, you can continue to study HSK 2 vocabulary or start learning words more relevant to your daily needs. You could also boost your Chinese by learning about basic Chinese grammar rules, basic phrases and sentences.

Last but not least, don’t forget to check out our Chinese Learning Channel for beginners, where you can find tons of useful resources waiting for you!

爱
ài

to love; affection; to be fond of; to like 八
bā

eight; 8 爸爸
bà ba

father (informal); CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 杯子
bēi zi

cup; glass; CL:个[ge4] ,支[zhi1] 北京
běi jīng

Beijing; capital of People’s Republic of China; Peking; PRC government 本
běn

origin; source; roots or stems of plants; this; the current; root; foundation; basis; classifier for books, periodicals, files etc; originally 不客气
bú kè qi

you’re welcome; it’s my pleasure (answer to someone who thanks) 不
bù

not (negative prefix); no 菜
cài

dish (type of food); vegetables; vegetable; cuisine; CL:盘[pan2] ,道[dao4] 茶
chá

tea; tea plant; CL:杯[bei1] ,壶[hu2] 吃
chī

to eat; to have one’s meal; to eradicate; to destroy; to absorb; to suffer; to exhaust 出租车
chū zū chē

taxi 打电话
dǎ diàn huà

to make a phone call 大
dà

big; huge; large; major; great; wide; deep; oldest; eldest 的
de

of; structural particle: used before a noun, linking it to preceding possessive or descriptive attributive 点
diǎn

a little; a bit; drop (of liquid); stain; spot; speck; jot; dot stroke (in Chinese characters); decimal point; point; mark (of degree or level); a place (with certain characteristics); iron bell; o’clock; some; (point) unit of measurement for type; to touch on briefly; to make clear; to light; to ignite; to kindle; period of time at night (24 minutes) (old); a drip; to dibble; classifier for small indeterminate quantities 电脑
diàn nǎo

computer; CL:台[tai2] 电视
diàn shì

television; TV; CL:台[tai2] ,个[ge4] 电影
diàn yǐng

movie; film; CL:部[bu4] ,幕[mu4] ,场[chang3] 东西
dōng xi

thing; stuff; person; CL:个[ge4] ,件[jian4] 都
dōu

all, both; entirely (due to) each; even; already 读
dú

to read; to study; reading of word (i.e. pronunciation), similar to 拼音[pin1 yin1] 对不起
duì bu qǐ

I’m sorry; excuse me; pardon me; if you please; sorry? (please repeat); unworthy; to let down; 多
duō

many; much; a lot of; numerous; multi- 多少
duō shǎo

how much; how many 儿子
ér zi

son 二
èr

two; 2; stupid (Beijing dialect) 饭店
fàn diàn

restaurant; hotel; CL:家[jia1],個|个[ge4]; 飞机
fēi jī

airplane; CL: 架[jia4] 分钟
fēn zhōng

minute 高兴
gāo xìng

happy; glad; willing (to do sth); in a cheerful mood 个
gè

classifier for people or objects in general; individual; this; that; size 工作
gōng zuò

job; work; construction; task; CL:个[ge4] ,份[fen4] ,项[xiang4] 狗
gǒu

dog; CL:只[zhi1] ,条[tiao2] 汉语
hàn yǔ

Chinese language 好
hǎo

good; well; proper; good to; easy to; very; so; (suffix indicating completion or readiness) 号
hào

day of a month; (suffix used after) name of a ship; (ordinal) number 喝
hē

to drink; to shout (a command) 和
hé

and; together with; with; sum; union; peace; harmony; surname He 很
hěn

very; (adverb of degree); quite; awfully 后面
hòu miàn

rear; back; behind; later; afterwards 回
huí

to go back; to turn around; to answer; to return; to circle; to revolve; Hui ethnic group; time; classifier for acts of a play; section or chapter (of a classic book) 会
huì

can; be possible; be able to; will; be likely to; be sure to; to assemble; to meet; to gather; to see; union; group; association; a moment (Taiwan pr. for this sense is hui3) 几
jǐ

how much; how many; several; a few 家
jiā

home; family; classifier for families or businesses; refers to the philosophical schools of pre-Han China; noun suffix for specialists in some activity such as musician or revolutionary, corresponds to English -ist, -er, -ary or -ian; surname Jia; CL:个[ge4] 叫
jiào

to call; to shout; to order; to ask; to be called; by (indicates agent in the passive mood) 今天
jīn tiān

today; at the present 九
jiǔ

nine; 9 开
kāi

to open; to start; to turn on; to operate (vehicle) 看
kàn

to look at 看见
kàn jiàn

to see; to catch sight of 块
kuài

unit of currency; lump (of earth); chunk; piece; classifier for pieces of cloth, cake, soap etc; colloquial word for yuan (or other unit of currency such as Hong Kong or US dollar etc), usually as 块钱 来
lái

to come; to arrive; to come round; ever since; next 老师
lǎo shī

teacher; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 了
le

(completed action marker); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause) 冷
lěng

cold 里
lǐ

inside; lining; interior; internal 六
liù

six; 6 吗
ma

(question tag) 妈妈
mā ma

mum; mama; mommy; mother; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 买
mǎi

to buy; to purchase 猫
māo

cat; CL:只[zhi1] 没关系
méi guān xi

it doesn’t matter 没有
méi yǒu

haven’t; hasn’t; doesn’t exist; to not have; to not be; 米饭
mǐ fàn

(cooked) rice 名字
míng zi

name (of a person or thing); CL:个[ge4] 明天
míng tiān

tomorrow 哪
nǎ

which? (interrogative, followed by classifier or numeral-classifier); 哪儿
nǎ er

where?; wherever; anywhere 那
nà

that; those; then (in that case); commonly pr. [nei4] before a classifier, esp. in Beijing; 呢
ne

(question particle for subjects already mentioned) 能
néng

to be able to; to be capable of; ability; capability; able; capable; can possibly; (usually used in the negative) to have the possibility of 你
nǐ

you (informal) 年
nián

year; CL:个[ge4] 女儿
nǚ ér

daughter 朋友
péng you

friend; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 漂亮
piào liang

pretty; beautiful 苹果
píng guǒ

apple; CL:个[ge4] ,颗[ke1] 七
qī

seven; 7 前面
qián miàn

ahead; in front; preceding; above 钱
qián

coin; money; CL:笔[bi3] 请
qǐng

to ask; to invite; please (do sth); to treat (to a meal etc); to request 去
qù

to go; to go to (a place); to cause to go or send (sb); to remove; to get rid of; (when used either before or after a verb) to go in order to do sth; to be apart from in space or time; (after a verb of motion indicates movement away from the speaker); (used after certain verbs to indicate detachment or separation); (of a time or an event etc) just passed or elapsed 热
rè

heat; to heat up; fervent; hot (of weather); warm up 人
rén

man; person; people; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 认识
rèn shi

to know; to recognize; to be familiar with; acquainted with sth; knowledge; understanding; awareness; cognition 三
sān

three; 3 商店
shāng diàn

store; shop; CL:家[jia1] ,个[ge4] 上
shàng

on 上午
shàng wǔ

morning; CL:个[ge4] 少
shǎo

few; little; lack 谁
shéi

who; also pronounced shui2 什么
shén me

what?; who?; something; anything 十
shí

ten; 10 时候
shí hou

time; length of time; moment; period 是
shì

to be; yes 书
shū

book; letter; CL:本[ben3] ,册[ce4] ,部[bu4]; see also Book of History 水
shuǐ

water; river; liquid; beverage 水果
shuǐguǒ

fruit 睡觉
shuì jiào

to go to bed; to go to sleep 说
shuō

to speak; to say; to explain; to scold; to tell off; a theory (usually in compounds such as 日心说 heliocentric theory); 四
sì

four; 4 岁
suì

classifier for years (of age); year; year (of crop harvests) 他
tā

he or him; (used for either sex when the sex is unknown or unimportant); (used before sb’s name for emphasis); (used as a meaningless mock object); other; another 她
tā

she 太
tài

too (much); very; extremely; highest; greatest 天气
tiān qì

weather 听
tīng

to listen; to hear; to obey; a can (loanword from English ‘tin’); classifier for canned beverages 同学
tóng xué

(fellow) classmate; CL:位[wei4] ,个[ge4] 喂
wèi

hello (interj., esp. on telephone); hey 我
wǒ

I; me; my 我们
wǒ men

we; us; ourselves; our 五
wǔ

five; 5 喜欢
xǐ huan

to like; to be fond of 下
xià

down; downwards; below; lower; later; next (week etc); second (of two parts); to decline; to go down 下午
xià wǔ

afternoon; p.m.; CL:个[ge4] 下雨
xià yǔ

to rain; rainy 先生
xiān sheng

Mister (Mr.); husband; doctor (topolect); teacher; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 现在
xiàn zài

now; at present; at the moment; modern; current; nowadays 想
xiǎng

to think; to believe; to suppose; to wish; to want; to miss 小
xiǎo

small; tiny; young 小姐
xiǎo jie

young lady; Miss; (slang) prostitute; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] 些
xiē

some; few; several; (a measure word) 写
xiě

to write 谢谢
xiè xie

to thank; thanks 星期
xīng qī

week; CL:个[ge4] 学生
xué sheng

student; school child 学习
xué xí

to learn; to study 学校
xué xiào

school; CL:所[suo3] 一
yī

one; 1; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; ‘one’ radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1) 一点儿
yī diǎn er

a little (bit) 医生
yī shēng

doctor; CL:个[ge4] ,位[wei4] ,名[ming2] 医院
yī yuàn

hospital; CL:所[suo3] ,家[jia1] ,座[zuo4] 衣服
yī fu

clothes; CL:件[jian4] ,套[tao4] 椅子
yǐ zi

chair; CL:把[ba3] ,套[tao4] 有
yǒu

to have; there is; there are; to exist; to be 月
yuè

month; moon; CL:个[ge4] ,轮[lun2] 再见
zài jiàn

goodbye; see you again later 在
zài

(located) at; (to be) in; to exist; in the middle of doing sth; (indicating an action in progress) 怎么
zěn me

how?; what?; why? 怎么样
zěn me yàng

how are things? how?; how about?; how was it? 这
zhè

this; these; (commonly pr. [zhei4] before a classifier, esp. in Beijing); 中国
zhōng guó

China; Middle Kingdom 中午
zhōng wǔ

noon; midday; CL:个[ge4] 住
zhù

to live; to dwell; to stay; to reside; to stop 桌子
zhuō zi

table; desk; CL:张[zhang1] ,套[tao4] 字
zì

letter; character; word; symbol; CL:个[ge4] 昨天
zuó tiān

yesterday 做
zuò

to do; to make; to produce; to write; to compose; to act as; to engage in; to hold (a party); to be; to become; to function (in some capacity); to serve as; to be used for; to form (a bond or relationship); to pretend; to feign; to act a part; to put on appearance 坐
zuò

to sit; to take a seat; to take (a bus, airplane etc); to bear fruit

500+ Chinese Vocabulary 📚Your Complete List

Welcome to the ultimate Chinese Vocabulary blog!

If there’s one thing we know all too well at LTL Mandarin School, it’s a good old fashioned Chinese vocabulary blog.

We’ve written dozens, fact-checked by our incredible Mandarin teachers.

Plus, have made thousands of flashcards to help our readers memories the Chinese vocabulary they’re learning.

You can find all our flashcards on our Pinterest and Instagram.

We’ve created this to be a helpful directory to access to top 10 words in each of our Chinese vocabulary blogs AND give you access to all our Chinese vocabulary videos in one convenient location.

Put your skills to the test with one of HSK Vocabulary tests and find our what level you’re at today, for FREE!

BONUS FREEBIE – Take the ULTIMATE Chinese Vocabulary Quiz ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Academic Vocabulary

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
School	学校	xuéxiào
Classroom	教室	jiàoshì
Student	学生	xuéshēng
Teacher	老师	lǎoshī
Textbook	课本	kèběn
Homework	作业	zuòyè
Quiz	测验	cèyàn
Exam	考试	kǎoshì
History	历史学	lìshǐ xué
Geography	地理学	dì lǐ xué

Play

See our full list of academic vocabulary.

Chinese Vocabulary: Alcohol

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Beer	啤酒	píjiǔ
Baijiu	白酒	bái jiǔ
Wine	葡萄酒	pú táo jiǔ
Red Wine	红酒	hóngjiǔ
White Wine	白葡萄酒	bái pútáojiǔ
Sparkling Wine	气泡酒	qìpào jiǔ
Champagne	香槟酒	xiāng bīn jiǔ
Vodka	伏特加	fú tè jiā
Whiskey	威士忌	wēi shì jì
Gin	劲酒	jìn jiǔ

Play

Discover more alcohol in Chinese.

Allergies in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Allergic	过敏	guò mǐn
Bless You	一百岁	yī bǎi suì
Hay Fever	花粉症	huāfěn zhèng
Pollen	花粉	huā fěn
Spring	春天	chūn tiān

Learn more about allergies in Chinese

Animals in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Animal	动物	dòng wù
Dog	狗	gǒu
Dragon	龙	lóng
Dolphin	海豚	hǎi tún
Snake	蛇	shé
Cow	牛	niú
Rat	鼠	shǔ
Tiger	虎	hǔ
Rabbit	兔子	tù zǐ
Horse	马	mǎ

Play

Find all the animals in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary: Body Parts

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Body	身体	shēn tǐ
Head	头	tóu
Face	脸	liǎn
Mouth	嘴	zuǐ
Chest	胸	xiōng
Back	背	bèi
Arm	胳膊	gē bo
Hand	手	shǒu
Leg	腿	tuǐ
Feet	脚底	jiǎodǐ

Discover all the body parts in Chinese.

Chess in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Chess (International)	国际象棋	guó jì xiàng qí
Chinese Chess	象棋	xiàngqí
Chess Piece	棋子	qízǐ
Chess Player	棋手	qí shǒu
Chess Board	棋盘	qí pán
White Piece	白棋	bái qí
Black Piece	黑棋	hēi qí
Pawn	兵, 卒	bīng, zú
Queen	后	hòu
King	王	wáng

Learn more about Chess in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Clothes

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Trousers	裤子	kù zi
Jeans	牛仔裤	niú zǎi kù
Shorts	短裤	duǎn kù
Dress	连衣裙	liányīqún
Skirt	裙子	qún zi
T-shirt	T恤	T xù
Jumper	毛衣	máo yī
Suit	西装	xī zhuāng
Shoe	鞋	xié
Socks	袜子	wàzi

Discover all the clothes in Chinese.

Coffee in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Coffee	咖啡	kāfēi
Latte	拿铁	nátiě
Cappuccino	卡布基诺	kǎbùjīnuò
Americano	美式咖啡	měishì Kāfēi
Espresso	浓缩咖啡	nóngsuō kāfēi
Hot	热的	rè de
Cold	冰的	bīng de
Milk	牛奶	niúnǎi
Sugar	糖	táng
Caramel	焦糖	jiāo táng

Play

Find more ways to order coffee in Chinese.

Colours in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Black	黑色	hēi sè
White	白色	bái sè
Red	红色	hóng sè
Pink	粉色	fěn sè
Green	绿色	lǜ sè
Yellow	黄色	huáng sè
Blue	蓝色	lán sè
Purple	紫色	zǐ sè
Gray	灰色	huī sè
Gold	金色	jīn sè

Play

Learn all the colours in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Directions

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Left	左边	zuǒ biān
Right	右边	yòu biān
Go straight	直走	zhí zǒu
Go backwards	向后走	xiàng hòu zǒu
Up	向上	xiàng shàng
Down	向下	xiàng xià
Over	通过	guò
Through	通过	tōng guò
Stop	停	tíng
North	北	běi

Play

See our full list of directions in Chinese.

Dog Breeds in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Dog	狗	gǒu
Paw	爪 zhuǎ	zhuǎ
Snout	口鼻部	kǒu bí bù
Tail	尾巴	wěi ba
To Bite	咬人	yǎo rén
To Sniff	闻	wén
To Bark	吠	fèi
Bulldog	牛头	niú tóu
Poodle	贵宾	guì bīn
Sheepdog	牧羊	mù yáng

Discover more dog breeds in Chinese.

Easter in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Easter	复活节	fùhuó jié
Happy Easter	复活节快乐	fùhuó jié kuàilè
Easter Bunny	复活节兔子	fùhuó jié tùzǐ
Easter Egg	彩蛋	cǎidàn
Easter Egg Hunt	寻找彩蛋	xúnzhǎo cǎidàn
Hot Cross Buns	十字餐包	shízì cān bāo
chocolate	巧克力	qiǎokèlì
decorations	装饰	zhuāngshì
lambs	羊羔	yánggāo
chicks	小鸡	xiǎo jī

Learn more about Easter in Chinese.

Eggs in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Chicken	鸡蛋	jī dàn
Duck	鸭子蛋	yā zi dàn
Emu	鸸鹋蛋	ér miáo dàn
Baked Egg	烘蛋	hōng dàn
Boiled Egg	水煮蛋	shuǐ zhǔ dàn
Fried Egg	煎鸡蛋	jiān jīdàn
Omelette	煎蛋卷	jiān dàn juǎn
Poached egg	荷包蛋	hébāodàn
Scrambled Egg	炒蛋	chǎo dàn
Yolk	蛋黄	dàn huáng

Get all the eggs in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Elections

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Democratic Party	民主党	mínzhǔdǎng
Republican Party	共和党	gònghédǎng
Libertarian Party	自由意志党	zìyóu yìzhì dǎng
Green Party	绿党	lǜdǎng
Constitution Party	宪法党	xiànfǎ dǎng
Politics	政治	zhèngzhì
Democracy	民主	mínzhǔ
Presidential Debate	总统辩论	zǒngtǒng biànlùn
Voting	投票	tóupiào
Nominate	提名	tímíng

Get more on elections in Chinese.

Encouragement in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Congratulations to you!	恭喜你	gōng xǐ nǐ
I’m happy for you!	我都替你高兴	wǒ dōu tì nǐ gāo xìng
I am so happy for you!	我真为你高兴	wǒ zhēn wèi nǐ gāoxìng
Well done!	干得好	gàn dé hǎo
Excellent!	太棒了	tài bàng le
You are awesome!	你真棒	nǐ zhēn bàng
Amazing!	了不起	liǎo bù qǐ！
You are so great!	你太厉害了	tài lì hai le
Don’t give up!	不要放弃	bù yào fàng qì
You can do it!	你可以的	nǐ kěyǐ de

Get all the encouragement in Chinese.

Feelings in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Excited	兴奋	xīngfèn
Grateful	感激的	gǎnjīde
Brave	勇敢	yǒnggǎn
Carefree	无忧无虑	wú yōu wú lǜ
Angry	生气	shēngqì
Annoyed	恼火	nǎo huǒ
Anxious	焦虑	jiāo lǜ
Bored	厌烦	yàn fán
Competitive	有竞争力	yǒu jìngzhēng lì
Hungry	饿	è

Learn all the feelings in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Fish

Vocabulary	Charachters	Pinyin
Bream	鳊鱼	biān yú
Catfish	鲶鱼	nián yú
Crab	螃蟹	páng xiè
Flounder	比目鱼	bǐ mù yú
Jellyfish	海蜇	hǎi zhé
Lobster	小龙虾	xiǎo lóng xiā
Octopus	章鱼	zhāng yú
Piranha	食人鱼	shí rén yú
Salmon	鲑鱼	guī yú
Tuna	金枪鱼	jīn qiāng yú

Get more Fish in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary: Fruit

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Apple	苹果	píng guǒ
Avocado	牛油果	niú yóu guǒ
Banana	香蕉	xiāng jiāo
Blueberry	蓝莓	lán méi
Coconut	椰子	yē zi
Grape	葡萄	pú táo
Grapefruit	柚子	yòu zi
Lemon	柠檬	níng méng
Lime	酸橙	suān chéng
Mango	芒果	máng guǒ

Play

Get more fruit in Chinese.

Furniture in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Table	桌子	zhuō zi
Chair	椅子	yǐ zi
Bed	床	chuáng
Couch	沙发	shā fā
Mirror	镜子	jìng zi
Carpet	地毯	dìtǎn
Fireplace	壁炉	bì lú
Wallpaper	墙纸	qiáng zhǐ
Blinds	百叶窗	bǎi yè chuāng
Table lamp	台灯	tái dēng

See our full list of furniture in Chinese.

Hello in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Hello (Standard)	你好	nǐ hǎo
Hello (Polite)	您好	nín hǎo
How are you?	你好吗	nǐ hǎo ma
How are you? (Polite)	您好吗	nín hǎo ma
what’s up?	你怎么样	nǐ zěnmeyàng
nice to meet you	幸会	xìnghuì
(Very formal greeting)	久仰	jiǔyǎng
Morning!	早	zǎo
Have you eaten?	你吃了吗	nǐ chī le ma
Hello (answering phone)	喂	wèi

Play

Find more ways to say hello in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: The House

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
House	家	jiā
Basement	地下室	dìxià shì
Bathroom	洗手间	xǐshou jiān
Dining Room	餐厅	cāntīng
Bedroom	卧室	wòshì
Kitchen	厨房	chúfáng
Office	办公室	bàngōngshì
Downstairs	楼下	lóuxià
Upstairs	楼上	lóushang
Toilet	卫生间	wèishēng jiān

Get all the vocabulary for a house in Chinese.

Instruments in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Guitar	吉他	jítā
Cello	大提琴	dàtíqín
Violin	小提琴	xiǎotíqín
Harp	竖琴	shùqín
Piano	钢琴	gāngqín
Xylophone	木琴	mùqín
Drums	鼓	gǔ
Trumpet	喇叭	lǎbā
Trombone	长号	cháng hào
Flute	长笛	chángdí

Play

Discover all the instruments in Chinese.

Jewellery in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Ring	戒指	jièzhi
Necklace	项链	xiàngliàn
Bracelet	手链	shǒuliàn
Earrings	耳环	ěrhuán
Nose ring	鼻环	bíhuán
Gold	黄金	huángjīn
Silver	银	yín
Diamond	钻石	zuànshí
Tiffany & Co	蒂芙尼	dìfúní
Pandora	潘多拉	pānduōlā

Find more jewellery in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Makeup

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Face	脸	liǎn
Forehead	额头	é’tóu
Eyebrows	眉毛	méimáo
Foundation	粉底	fěndǐ
Bronzing powder	古铜粉	gǔ tóng fěn
Highlighter	高光	gāoguāng
Contour	修容	xiū róng
Concealer	遮瑕膏	zhēxiá gāo
Blush	腮红	sāihóng
Eye shadow	眼影	yǎnyǐng

Learn all the makeup in Chinese.

Maths in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Number	数字	shù zì
Odd	奇数的	jī shù de
Even	偶数的	ǒu shù de
Plus/Add	加法	jiā fǎ
One Half (1/2)	二分之一	èrfēn zhīyī
One Third (1/3)	三分之一	sānfēn zhīyī
One Quarter (1/4)	四分之一	sìfēn zhīyī
Arithmetic	算术	suàn shù
Algebra	代数	dài shù
Calculus	微积分	wēi jī fēn

Play

Get more math in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Measure Words

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
generic	个	gè
flat things (paper)	张	zhāng
books	本	běn
glasses or cups	杯	bēi
bottles	瓶	píng
clothing, presents or problems	件	jiàn
families or business	家	jiā
animals	只	zhī
vehicles with wheels	辆	liàng
A pair of (something)	双	shuāng

See our full list of measure words.

Measurements in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
gram	克	kè
milligram	毫克	háo kè
kilogram	公斤	gōng jīn
ton	吨	dūn
length	长	cháng
metre	米	mǐ
centimetre	厘米	lí mǐ
kilometre	公里	gōng lǐ
litre	升	shēng
hectare	公顷	gōng qǐng

Discover more measurements in Chinese.

Mobile Phone (settings) in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
SIM card	SIM 卡	sim kǎ
Battery	电池	diàn chí
Button	按钮	àn niǔ
Charger	充电器	chōng diàn qì
Contacts	电话簿	diàn huà bù
WiFi	无线	wú xiàn
Notification	通知	tōng zhī
Email	邮件	yóu jiàn
WeChat	微信	wēi xìn
Camera	相机	xiàng jī

Learn more about your phone in Chinese.

Money in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
money	钱	qián
coin	硬币	yìngbì
debt	债务	zhài wù
bank	银行	yín háng
credit card	信用卡	xìn yòng kǎ
price	价钱	jià qian
to pay	付	fù
give change	零钱	líng qián
ATM	自动取款机	zì dòng qǔ kuǎn jī
exchange rate	汇率	huì lǜ

Play

Get all the money in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Numbers

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
0	零	líng
1	一	yī
2	二	èr
3	三	sān
10	十	shí
99	九十九	jiǔ shí jiǔ
100	一百	yì bǎi
Year	年	nián
month	月	yuè
Date	日	rì

Discover all the numbers in Chinese.

Occupations in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Job	工作	gōngzuò
Accountant	会计	kuài jì
Designer	设计师	shè jì shī
Lawyer	律师	lǜ shī
Beautician	美容师	měi róng shī
Doctor	医生	yī shēng
Hairdresser	理发师	lǐ fà shī
Artist	艺术家	yì shù jiā
Farmer	农民	nóngmín
Teacher	老师	lǎo shī

Find more occupations in Chinese.

Olympics in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Olympic Games	奥运会	ào yùn huì
Olympic Torch	奥运会的圣火	àoyùnhuì de shènghuǒ
The Olympic Flag	奥运会会旗	àoyùnhuìhuìqí
Opening Ceremony	奥运会开幕式	àoyùnhuì kāimù shì
Swimming	游泳	yóuyǒng
Athletics	田径	tiánjìng
Cycling	自行车	zìxíngchē
Gold medal	金牌	jīnpái
Athlete	运动员	yùndòngyuán
Paralympic Games	残奥会	cán ào huì

Learn all the vocabulary for the Olympics in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Opposites

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Rich	富有	fù yǒu
Poor	贫穷	pín qióng
Sick	生病	shēng bìng
Healthy	健康	jiàn kāng
Big	大	dà
Small	小	xiǎo
Fast	快	kuài
Slow	慢	màn
Happy	快乐	kuài lè
Sad	伤心	shāngxīn

Get more opposites in Chinese.

Places in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
France	法国	fà guó
America	美国	měi guó
Brazil	巴西	bā xī
Egypt	埃及	āi jí
South Africa	南非	nán fēi
Japan	日本	rì běn
India	印度	yìn dù
Phuket	普吉岛	pǔ jí dǎo
London	伦敦	lún dūn
New York	纽约	niǔ yuē

Play

See our full list of places in Chinese.

Plants in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Daisy	雏菊花	chújú huā
Cactus	仙人掌	xiānrénzhǎng
Rose	玫瑰	méiguī
Sunflower	向日葵	xiàngrìkuí
Lavender	薰衣草	xūnyīcǎo
Lotus	莲花	liánhuā
Iris	鸢尾花	yuānwěi huā
Orchid	兰花	lánhuā
Lily	百合	bǎihé
Bamboo	竹子	zhúzi

Discover more plants in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Questions

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Who	谁	shéi
What	什么	shén me
Why	为什么	wèi shén me
Where	哪里	nǎ lǐ
Which	哪个	nǎ ge
When	什么时候	shén me shí hou
How	怎么	zěn me
What’s your name?	您叫什么名字	nín jiào shénme míngzi？
Where do you live?	您住在哪里？	nín zhù zài nǎ lǐ？
Do you like China?	您喜欢中国吗？	nín xǐ huan zhōng guó ma？

Find all the questions in Chinese.

Days, Months and Seasons in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Monday	星期一	xīng qī yī
Sunday	星期天	xīng qī tiān
January	一月	yī yuè
December	十二月	shí èr yuè
Summer	夏天	xià tiān
Winter	冬天	dōng tiān
Morning	早晨	zǎo chén
Night	夜晚	yè wǎn
Today	今天	jīn tiān
Tomorrow	明天	míng tiān

Learn more days months and seasons in Chinese.

Shapes in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Shape	形状	xíng zhuàng
Triangle	三角形	sān jiǎo xíng
Square	方形	fāng xíng
Circle	圆形	yuán xíng
Rectangle	矩形	jǔ xíng
Pentagon	五角形	wǔjiǎoxíng
Octagon	八角形	bā jiǎoxíng
Sphere	球形	qiú xíng
Cone	锥体	zhuī tǐ
Cube	立方体	lì fāng tǐ

Play

Get all the shapes in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Shopping

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Appliances	家电	jiādiàn
Home	居家	jūjiā
Digital	数码	shùmǎ
Cars	汽车	qìchē
Toys	玩具	wánjù
Entertainment	娱乐	yúlè
Beauty	美妆	měi zhuāng
Personal care	个护	gè hù
Jewellery	饰品	shìpǐn
Furniture	家具	jiājù

Discover all the shopping in Chinese.

Shower in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
To bathe	洗澡	xǐzǎo
To shower	淋浴	línyù
Shampoo	洗发水	xǐfàshuǐ
Conditioner	护发素	hùfàsù
Body Wash	沐浴露	mùyùlù
Hair dryer	吹风机	chuīfēngjī
Towel	毛巾	máojīn
Face wash	洗面奶	xǐmiànnǎi
Moisturizer	护肤霜	hùfūshuāng
Soap	肥皂	féizào

Find more vocabulary for the shower in Chinese.

Space in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Sun	太阳	tài yáng
Mercury	水星	shuǐ xīng
Venus	金星	jīn xīng
Earth	地球	dì qiú
Space	太空	tài kōng
Asteroid	小行星	xiǎo xíng xīng
Black Hole	黑洞	hēi dòng
Comet	彗星	huì xīng
Galaxy	银河系	yín hé xì
Moon	月亮	yuè liang

Learn all about space in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Sports

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Fan	球迷	qiú mí
Match	球赛	qiú sài
Table Tennis	乒乓球	pīngpāng qiú
Basketball	篮球	lánqiú
Cricket	板球	bǎn qiú
Football	足球	zúqiú
Run	跑步	pǎobù
Swim	游泳	yóu yǒng
Skiing	滑雪	huáxuě
Boxing	拳击	quánjí

Play

Get more sports in Chinese.

Stationery in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Pen	笔	bǐ
Pencil	铅笔	qiānbǐ
School Bag	书包	shūbāo
Calculator	计算器	jìsuànqì
Eraser	橡皮	xiàngpí
Pencil Sharpener	转笔刀	zhuànbǐdāo
Scissors	剪刀	jiǎndāo
Sticky Tape	胶带	jiāodài
Paperclip	曲别针	qūbiézhēn
Stapler	订书机	dìngshūjī

Play

See our full list of stationery in Chinese.

Subway (sandwiches) in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Subway	赛百味	sài bǎiwèi
Bread	面包	miàn bāo
6 Inch	6寸的	liù cùn de
Footlong	12寸的	shíèr cùn de
Veggie Delight	缤纷蔬菜	bīnfēn shūcài
Ham and Chinese	西式火腿	xīshì huǒtuǐ
Lettuce	生菜	shēng cài
Tomato	生菜	shēng cài
Honey Mustard	蜜汁芥末酱	mì zhī jiè mò jiàng
Mayonnaise	蛋黄酱	dàn huáng jiàng

Play

Discover more about ordering a Subway in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Superheroes

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Superhero	超级英雄	chāo jí yīng xióng
Spiderman	蜘蛛侠	zhīzhū xiá
Superman	超人	chāorén
Batman	蝙蝠侠	biānfúxiá
Joker	小丑	xiǎochǒu
Wonder Woman	神奇女侠	shénqí nǚxiá
Green Lantern	绿灯侠	lǜdēng xiá
Thor	雷神托尔	léi shén tuō ěr
Captain America	美国队长	měiguó duì zhǎng
Iron Man	钢铁侠	gāngtiě xiá

Find all the superheroes in Chinese.

Therapy in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Therapy	治疗	zhìliáo
Therapist	治疗师	zhìliáo shī
Psychology	心理学	xīnlǐ xué
Speech Therapy	言语干预	yán yǔ gān yù
Occupational Therapy	职能辅导	zhí néng fǔ dǎo
Behavioural Therapy	行为辅导	xíng wéi fǔ dǎo
Physiotherapy	物理疗法	wùlǐ liáofǎ
Therapy Dog	治疗狗	zhìliáo gǒu
Assessment	评估	píng gū
Behaviour	行为	xíng wéi

Learn more about therapy in Chinese.

Time in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Clock	时钟	shí zhōng
1 O’Clock	一点	yī diǎn
Hour	小时	xiǎo shí
Minute	分钟	fēn zhōng
Second	秒	miǎo
Morning	早上	zǎo shang
Today	今天	jīntiān
Yesterday	昨天	zuótiān
Tomorrow	明天	míngtiān
Wednesday	星期三	xīngqī sān

Get all the time in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary: Transport

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Transport	交通运输	jiāotōng yùnshū
Ambulance	救护车	jiùhù chē
Bicycle	自行车	zìxíng chē
Bus	公共汽车	gōnggòng qìchē
Car	车	chē
Motorbike	摩托车	mótuō chē
Taxi	出租车	chūzū chē
Tram	电车	diànchē
Van	面包车	miànbāo chē
Helicopter	直升机	zhíshēng jī

Play

Discover more ways to talk about transportation in Chinese.

Vegetables in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Asparagus	芦笋	lú sǔn
Broccoli	西兰花	xī lán hu
Cabbage	卷心菜	juǎnxīncài
Carrot	胡萝卜	hú luó bo
Cauliflower	菜花	cài huā
Celery	芹菜	qín cài
Cucumber	黄瓜	huáng guā
Eggplant	茄子	qié zi
Garlic	大蒜	dà suàn
Mushrooms	蘑菇	mó gu

Play

Find more vegetables in Chinese.

Verbs in Chinese

Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Agree	同意	tóng yì
Answer	回答	huí dá
Cook	做饭	zuò fàn
Cry	哭	kū
Dig	挖	wā
Find	找到	zhǎo dào
Give	给	gěi
Have	有	yǒu
Hear	听见	tīng jiàn
Laugh	笑	xiào

Learn all the verbs in Chinese.

Viruses in Chinese

Chinese Vocabulary	Characters	Pinyin
Hospital	医院	yīyuàn
Doctor	医生	yīshēng
Nurse	护士	hùshì
Pharmacy	药店	yàodiàn
Pharmacist	药剂师	yàojì shī
Medicine	药	yào
Symptom	症状	zhèngzhuàng
Unwell	不舒服	bù shūfu
Fever	发烧	fā shāo zhuangzheng
Headache	头疼	tóuténg

Find out how to talk about viruses in Chinese.

Chinese Vocabulary Quiz

Ready to test yourself? 100 questions all relating to what we taught you above.

Strap in, buckle up… and see how good your Chinese Vocabulary really is…!

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BONUS CONTENT | Interested in other languages too? Why not check out our list of the 100 most common Korean words to learn and the most commonly used Kanji in Japanese too.

Chinese Vocabulary – FAQ’s

How can I improve my Chinese vocabulary?

Some ways to improve your Chinese vocabulary is to use personal images while studying the new vocab.

For example, learn dog (狗 gǒu) while looking at an image of your dog.

Next recall what you have previously learnt (not review), recalling information will help kick your brain into gear.

Finally, try using a spaced repetition system to review words right at the moment you’re about to forget them!

What are the basic Chinese words?

The fundamentals of basic Chinese words can all be found in HSK 1 and 2.

After passing HSK 2 you would be able to communicate in simple and routine tasks.

This would include very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment and more. Discover all the levels of the HSK levels and the Chinese words in each category.

How do you say vocabulary in Chinese?

Vocabulary in Chinese is: 词汇 cíhuì

Can I learn Chinese online?

Absolutely!

There are plenty of resources to learn Chinese online. However one of the best ways to ensure you are pronouncing the Chinese tones correctly is to get immediate feedback from an online Chinese tutor.

Want more from LTL?

Want to learn Chinese from the comfort of you own home? Then Online Chinese lessons might be the thing for you.

If you wish to hear more from LTL Mandarin School why not join our mailing list.

We give plenty of handy information on learning Chinese, useful apps to learn the language and everything going on at our LTL schools! Sign up below and become part of our ever growing community!

You want to learn Chinese, but you are afraid that you won’t succeed?

It’s perfectly normal to feel that way! And you’re not alone.

After all, Chinese Mandarin is known as
the hardest language to learn.

With more than 1.1 billion speakers, it is also the most spoken language in the world. Therefore, it can’t be
as difficult as you may think to learn Chinese when so many people speak it.

Learning Chinese words doesn’t have to be a nightmare.

With our 99 basic Chinese words and phrases, you can communicate with native speakers with ease.

Moreover, you can also download a free printable PDF file with Chinese words to carry with you anywhere.

Download Free PDF

And now, without further ado, let’s dive in.

Chinese Words for Greetings and Goodbyes

Learning salutation and
farewell phrases are essential in any language. As you will see, these Chinese phrases are not so hard as you might think.

Should you need any help with pronunciation, you can consult
Chinese tutors.

• 你好 Hello/Good day

Pronunciation: Nǐhǎo

It means ‘good day’ or ‘wishing you are good.’

You can use it in any part of the day. It is also the most basic way to greet people.

• 喂 Hello (on the phone) 

Pronunciation: Wèi

This phrase we can describe as ‘nǐhǎo’ over the phone.

But remember: it is used when you answer the phone only.

• 你好吗？ How are you? 

Pronunciation: Nǐ hǎo ma?

This phrase usually follows the usual salutation, ‘nǐ hǎo.’ It can be translated as ‘are you okay?’

•  很好 Very good

Pronunciation: Hěn hǎo

The answer to the previous question on how you are can be positive as this phrase.

• 不太好 Not so good 

Pronunciation: Bú tài hǎo

When asking ‘how are you, people mainly use positive answers. But, if someone has a real problem, they’ll give you a negative reply. In Chinese, the negative variant is ‘不太好’ which is pronounced ‘Bú tài hǎo.’

• 你早! Good Morning! 

Pronunciation: Nǐ zǎo

If you want to use some other greeting, for saluting someone in the morning, you can use the phrase ‘你早,’ pronounced ‘nǐ zǎo.’

The Chinese also commonly use a little shorter version of this phrase, ‘早!’ (Zǎo!) which is a perfect equivalent to the English ‘Morning!’ It is a more natural way people greet each other in the morning.

• 午安  Good afternoon

Pronunciation: Wǔ’ān

Even though ‘nǐ hǎo’ is widely and more often used than this phrase, if you want to switch a bit, you can use this phrase for greeting someone in the afternoon.

• 晚安 Good night 

Pronunciation: Wǎn’ān

At the end of the day, you may use ‘晚安’ (Wǎn’ān). You can also use it when you are going to bed.

•  再见 Goodbye  

Pronunciation: Zàijiàn

The phrase ‘再见(Zàijiàn) is an inevitable part of any polite conversation. Used for farewells, you can’t end a decent conversation without it.

• 拜拜 Bye Bye

Pronunciation: Báibái

Very popular among young people, this phrase is an English loanword, so if you are in the company of teenagers or people in their 20s, you will hear it often.

Being Polite in Chinese

Even though the Chinese can use
curse words a lot, it’s all about politeness in their culture and tradition. 

Therefore, it’s essential to learn some basic phrases for being polite. You’ll see that they’ll come in handy during your conversations.

• 谢谢 Thank you 

Pronunciation: Xièxie

Just like ‘ni hao’ is the basic greeting, ‘xièxie’ or ‘thank you’ in English is the basic phrase for being polite.

•  不客气 You’re welcome

Pronunciation: Bú kèqi

Replying to ‘thank you,’ you can use the phrase ‘bú kèqi,’ which means ‘you’re welcome.’

• 幸會 [幸会] Nice to meet you

Pronunciation: Xìng huì

When you meet someone, you usually greet them and
shake hands. That’s when you can use this phrase. But don’t forget to look at people’s eyes when you say it.

• 请 Please 

Pronunciation: Qǐngh

Being polite is important for Chinese people, so make sure you remember this phrase. However, please don’t use it too often, because, it can eventually lose its true meaning.

• 不好意思 Excuse me 

Pronunciation: Bù hǎo yìsi

In English, this phrase means ‘embarrassed.’ In other words, the person who says this is embarrassed by a situation.

You can use it when you accidentally run into someone or when you have to interrupt someone to ask them something.

• 没问题 No problem 

Pronunciation: Méi wèntí

One of the answers to the phrases ‘Excuse me’ and ‘I’m sorry’ can also be ‘méi wèntí.’

You can use it in other situations when everything works fine.

Introducing Yourself

• 你叫什么名字？ What’s your name? 

Pronunciation: Nǐ jiào shénme míngzì?

If you want to ask the name of the person you’re talking to in Chinese, use this phrase.

Keep in mind that, only people who know each other very well address each other by full name or first name in Chinese culture. 

When you are introduced to some or on business meetings, you can also use the full name.

However, don’t use it with people older than you, senior in rank, or your clients at work.

Instead, ask for their family name. 

• 我叫… My name is… 

Pronunciation: Wǒ jiào…

After asking for a personal name, the next step is for you to introduce yourself. 

This phrase can be translated as ‘I’m called…’ but that’s the easiest one to use when you want to say your name.

•  你是哪里人？ Where are you from?

Pronunciation: Nǐ shì nǎlǐ rén?

In China, you can often hear this question. The Chinese are always delighted to hear where you are from, and when they get to know you better, they like to know about customs and life in your country.

• 我是…人 I’m from… 

Pronunciation: Wǒ shì … rén

Answering the previous question is possible in many different ways, but this one is far easier.

In the middle of the sentence, you have to put your country name.

Do You Speak Chinese?

If you get stuck in a situation when you don’t know what to say or explain what you want, you need to know some of the basic Chinese phrases.

Even if you make a mistake, don’t be afraid. The Chinese are full of understanding, and they’ll help you any way they can.

• 你会说英文吗？Do you speak English? 

Pronunciation: Nǐ huì shuō Yīngwén ma?

If your brain simply stopped working and can’t think of any word in Chinese, make sure that the speaker can understand you. First, you need to ask them ‘Nǐ huì shuō Yīngwén ma?’, that is used for ‘Do you speak English?.’

• 听不懂 I don’t understand 

Pronunciation: Tīng bù dǒng

It is the right phrase to remember as you will need it. Remember that this phrase means that you don’t understand anything the speaker says. So, to avoid an uncomfortable situation, say ‘Tīng bù dǒng.

• 不知道 I don’t know 

Pronunciation: Bù zhīdào

Another phrase you’ll likely hear when surrounded by Chinese speakers. You can use it just like the way you use it in English.

•  我只会说一点中文 I only speak a little Chinese

Pronunciation: Wǒ zhǐ huì shuō yìdiǎn Zhōngwén

Don’t be shy to use Chinese even if you only know several words and phrases. The locals will

appreciate your efforts.

• …什么意思？ What does…mean? 

Pronunciation: … shénme yìsi?

Ask Chinese native speakers whatever you want to know. To do that, use the phrase ‘… shénme yìsi?’ Place the word or phrase you want to know at the beginning of the sentence.

Basic Numbers 

Chinese numbers are an easy part of learning. They are based on the
decimal system. 

Here are some of the basic Chinese numbers.

•  一 One

Pronunciation: Yī

• 二 Two 

Pronunciation: Èr

As for number two, there are two different words; ‘èr’ and ‘liǎng.’ They are used on different occasions. 

But, for starters, this is sufficient.

• 四 Four 

Pronunciation: Sì

Numbers play a vital part in Chinese lives. Unlike the rest of the world, the Chinese consider

number four extremely unlucky.

Therefore, it’s not strange that this word also means ‘death.’

The Chinese avoid using numbers four and fourteen when choosing phone numbers, room numbers, or select dates of ceremonies.

• 八 Eight 

Pronunciation: Bā 

Unlike number four, eight is one of the most favorite numbers. It brings good luck, success, and wealth.

• 十 Ten 

Pronunciation: Shí

• 一百 One hundred 

Pronunciation: Yì bǎi

• 一千 One thousand 

Pronunciation: Yì qiān

Shopping in Chinese

Whether you go shopping for souvenirs, clothes, or food, you’ll find these phrases useful.

• 多少钱? How much is it? 

Pronunciation: Duōshǎo qián?

By asking the price of something at a shop or a street market in China, use ‘Duōshǎo qián?’

• 太贵了！ Too expensive! 

` Pronunciation: Tài guì le!

It’s common to bargain for almost anything: souvenirs, clothes, shoes, accessories, electronics, fruit, etc.

So, don’t forget to memorize the phrase ‘Tai GUI le!’

• 便宜一点！Make it cheaper! 

Pronunciation: Piányi yì diǎn!

This phrase doesn’t go without the one above, so when you start your bargain, you should remember this one, too. 

At the Restaurant

Restaurants and bars are perfect places to make new friends. As you already know, Chinese kitchens are known across the globe. So besides practicing the language with the locals, you can explore delicious Chinese dishes.

To do that, you’ll need some essential words and phrases related to food and restaurants. 

•   菜单 Menu

Pronunciation: Càidān

If you find it challenging to read Chinese menus, by asking 有没有英文菜单？ (Yǒu méiyǒu Yīngwén càidān?), you are asking if the restaurant has an English menu. You would be surprised how many of them have it.

• 请给我…Please bring me… 

Pronunciation: Qǐng gěi wǒ…

When you are ready to order, use this phrase.

•  水 Water 

Pronunciation: Shuǐ

When you ask for ‘Shui,’ don’t be surprised if you get tea or hot lemon water. The Chinese custom is to serve these beverages. If you want iced water, you can say ‘冰水’ (bīngshuǐ).

•  筷子 Chopsticks

Pronunciation: Kuàizi

It’s not a big deal if you don’t know how to use chopsticks. But, it would be best if you learned how. The overall impression of eating Chinese food is with chopsticks.

• 叉子 Fork 

Pronunciation: Chāzi

If you simply don’t know or don’t want to use chopsticks, feel free to ask for ‘chāzi’, which is ‘fork.’

• 买单 Check, please 

Pronunciation: Mǎi dān

Before you leave the restaurant, use the phrase ‘Mǎi dān’ to ask for the check.

•  服务员 Waiter/Waitress 

Pronunciation: Fúwùyuán

This is a gender-neutral word, and it means ‘service staff.’ It refers not to the waiter/waitress but also the steward/stewardess, shop assistant, etc.

Asking For Directions, Time And Help

Imagine that you’re in China to meet a friend and you get lost. How would you ask for directions?

Find out in the following lines.

• …在哪儿？Where is…? 

Pronunciation: … zài nǎr?

To use this phrase properly, say the name of the place you’re looking at at the beginning of the sentence and then continue with the ‘zài nǎr?’

• …怎么去？How do I get to…? 

Pronunciation: … zěnme qù?

Here’s one more useful phrase to remember when asking for directions in Chinese.

•  什么时候? At what time?

Pronunciation: Shénme shíhou?

When you have to meet with someone, for example, you can use the phrase ‘Shénme shíhou?’ It can also be translated as ‘when.’

In case you want to ask what time is it, use this expression: ‘现在几点？’(xiàn zài jǐ diǎ)

Short Simple Answers 

• 是的 Yes 

Pronunciation: Shì de

• 不是 No

Pronunciation: Bú shì

In Chinese, there is no specific word for ‘no’ neither for ‘yes.’ 

If you want to use it separately, you have to know the grammar rules.

However, these two phrases can help you in need.

• 好的 Good/Okay 

Pronunciation: Hǎo de

When you accept someone’s invitation or request or ask for a favor, use this phrase.

Special Occasions

The following basic phrases are ideal for you to get off on the right foot.

• 我爱你 I love you 

Pronunciation: Wǒ ài nǐ

You never know whether you’ll need this phrase soon, so, just in case, memorize it now.

• 生日快乐！Happy birthday! 

Pronunciation: Shēngrì kuàilè!

Wishing your friend a happy birthday in Chinese is possible with the phrase ‘Shēngrì kuàilè!’

• 恭喜發財 [恭喜发财] Happy Chinese New Year

Pronunciation: Gōngxǐ fācái

Don’t forget to save the date for Chinese New Year in your calendar and memorize this phrase, too.

Final Thoughts

There you have it! 99 basic Chinese words and phrases for complete beginners! Now you see that Chinese isn’t so difficult to learn as you may have thought at first.

Pronunciation can be challenging a bit, and you have to get used to different rules, but you can always book a lesson and practice with
Chinese tutors, native speakers who are willing to help you.

And don’t forget to
get your free copy of the Chinese words.

祝你好运！Zhù nǐ hǎo yùn! (Good luck!)