Appendix:HSK list of Mandarin words
From 2021 (HSK v3.0)
[edit]In 2021, a new list of words was introduced for the HSK (新汉语水平考试). It consists of three grades, each split into three levels (officially termed 等 "levels" and 级 "bands" respectively).
| Grade | Level | Words | Characters | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| in level | cumulative | in level | cumulative | ||
| 初等 Elementary Mandarin | 一级 Level 1 | 500 | 500 | 300 | 300 |
| 二级 Level 2 | 772 | 1272 | 300 | 600 | |
| 三级 Level 3 | 973 | 2245 | 300 | 900 | |
| 中等 Intermediate Mandarin | 四级 Level 4 | 1000 | 3245 | 300 | 1200 |
| 五级 Level 5 | 1071 | 4316 | 300 | 1500 | |
| 六级 Level 6 | 1140 | 5456 | 300 | 1800 | |
| 高等 Advanced Mandarin | 七—九级 Level 7–9 (1, 2, 3) | 5636 | 11092 | 1200 | 3000 |
The total number of Chinese characters to know is 3,000.
Between 2010 and 2021 (HSK v2.0)
[edit]In 2010, a new list of words was introduced for the HSK (新汉语水平考试). This list will soon become obsolete with the introduction of HSK 3.0 in 2021.
| List | Level | Total cumulative words | Total new words |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | 一级 | 150 | 150 |
| Level 2 | 二级 | 300 | 150 |
| Level 3 | 三级 | 600 | 300 |
| Level 4 | 四级 | 1200 | 600 |
| Level 5 | 五级 | 2500 | 1300 |
| Level 6 | 六级 | 5000 | 2500 |
The total number of Chinese characters to know is 2,663.
Before 2010 (HSK v1.0)
[edit]Beginning, Elementary, Intermediate and Advanced Chinese categories are based on the 甲乙丙丁 categories as set forth in the former version of the Hànyǔ Shuǐpíng Kǎoshì (Chinese Proficiency Test). These word lists are no longer current as a new 6-level HSK test format was introduced in 2010.
| Wiktionary | HSK committee | Level number | Total words | Total characters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beginning Mandarin | 甲 (jiǎ) | 1 | 1033 | 800 |
| Elementary Mandarin | 乙 (yǐ) | 2 | 2019 | 803 |
| Intermediate Mandarin | 丙 (bǐng) | 3 | 2205 | 591 |
| Advanced Mandarin | 丁 (dīng) | 4 | 3583 | 671 |
- Source: https://www.unige.ch/lettres/estas/unites/chinois/general/hsk/
- The total number of words on the HSK committee list is 8840. If a word falls outside that list, it will not be classified as beginning, elementary, intermediate or advanced.