HSK 2 Vocabulary List: 500 Words (HSK 3.0)
HSK 2 has 500 words in HSK 3.0, 200 of them new at this level (the old HSK 2.0 list had 300). Fluentide has 292 free stories at the Beginner (HSK 2) level that use them, with transcript and pinyin.
By Haoshan Hong · Native Mandarin speaker · Updated October 2026
Hear HSK 2 words in a real story
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What is on the HSK 2 word list?
The other 300 come from HSK 1. They cover travel, shopping, weather, health, and simple plans: the first vocabulary that lets you handle a short exchange without English.
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HSK 2 word list
All 497 words from the official HSK 3.0 syllabus, the 197 new at HSK 2 first. The syllabus counts 500 because a few words are listed once per reading; here each appears once.
Pinyin from the syllabus, definitions from CC-CEDICT. Tap a word for its other senses.
Showing 201–250 of 497 · page 5 of 10
吧baHSK 1(modal particle indicating suggestion or surmise)
- (modal particle indicating suggestion or surmise)
- ...right?
- ...OK?
- ...I presume.
- bar (loanword) (serving drinks, or providing Internet access etc)
- to puff (on a pipe etc)
- (onom.) bang
- (onom.) smack!
- abbr. for 贴吧
白天báitiānHSK 1daytime
- daytime
- during the day
- day
- CL:个
百bǎiHSK 1hundred
- hundred
- numerous
- all kinds of
- surname Bai
半bànHSK 1half
- half
- semi-
- incomplete
- (after a number) and a half
包子bāoziHSK 1baozi
- baozi
- bao (steamed stuffed bun)
杯子bēiziHSK 1cup
- cup
- glass
- CL:个,只
本běnHSK 1classifier for books
- classifier for books
- this
- origin
- (bound form) root
- stem
- (bound form) origin
- source
- (bound form) one's own
- this
- (bound form) this
- the current (year etc)
- (bound form) original
- (bound form) inherent
- originally
- initially
- capital
- principal
- classifier for books, periodicals, files etc
边biānHSK 1side
- side
- edge
- margin
- border
- boundary
- CL:个
- simultaneously
- suffix of a noun of locality
便宜piányiHSK 1cheap
- cheap
- inexpensive
- a petty advantage
- to let sb off lightly
病bìngHSK 1illness
- illness
- CL:场
- disease
- to fall ill
- defect
不bùHSK 1no
- no
- not so
- (bound form) not
- un-
不客气bú kèqiHSK 1you're welcome
- you're welcome
- don't mention it
- impolite
- rude
- blunt
不要búyàoHSK 1don't!
- don't!
- must not
菜càiHSK 1vegetable
- vegetable
- greens (CL:棵)
- dish (of food) (CL:样,道,盘)
- (of one's skills etc) weak
- poor
- (coll.) (one's) type
茶cháHSK 1tea
- tea
- tea plant
- CL:杯,壶
唱chàngHSK 1to sing
- to sing
- to call loudly
- to chant
超市chāoshìHSK 1supermarket (abbr. for 超级市场)
- supermarket (abbr. for 超级市场)
- CL:家
车chēHSK 1car
- car
- vehicle
- CL:辆
- machine
- to shape with a lathe
- Kangxi radical 159
- war chariot (archaic)
- rook (in Chinese chess)
- rook (in chess)
- surname Che
吃chīHSK 1to eat
- to eat
- to consume
- to eat at (a cafeteria etc)
- to eradicate
- to destroy
- to absorb
- to suffer (shock, injury, defeat etc)
- variant of 吃
出租车chūzūchēHSK 1taxi
- taxi
- (Tw) rental car
穿chuānHSK 1to wear
- to wear
- to put on
- to bore through
- to pierce
- to perforate
- to go through (e.g. a tunnel)
- to cross (e.g. a street)
- to thread
- to string together
- to wear
- to put on (clothes, shoes etc.)
- verb complement indicating thoroughness or completion
打电话dǎ diànhuàHSK 1to make a telephone call
- to make a telephone call
大dàHSK 1big
- big
- large
- great
- older (than another person)
- eldest (as in 大姐)
- greatly
- freely
- fully
- (dialect) father
- (dialect) uncle (father's brother)
- see 大夫
大家dàjiāHSK 1everyone
- everyone
- influential family
- great expert
大学dàxuéHSK 1university
- university
- college
- CL:所
大学生dàxuéshēngHSK 1university student
- university student
- college student
到dàoHSK 1to reach
- to reach
- to arrive
- to leave for
- to go to
- to (a place)
- until (a time)
- up to (a point)
- (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point)
- considerate
- thoughtful
- thorough
的deHSK 1of
- of
- ~'s (possessive particle)
- (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun)
- (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis)
- (used after a noun, verb or adjective to form a nominal expression, as in 皮革的 "one made of leather" or 跑堂儿的 "a waiter (literally, one who runs back and forth in a restaurant)" or 新的 "new one")
- also pr. or in poetry and songs
- (bound form) a taxi
- a cab (abbr. for 的士)
- really and truly
- (bound form) bull's-eye
- target
弟弟dìdiHSK 1younger brother
- younger brother
- CL:个,位
第dìHSK 1(prefix indicating ordinal number, as in 第六 "sixth")
- (prefix indicating ordinal number, as in 第六 "sixth")
- (literary) grades in which successful candidates in the imperial examinations were placed
- (old) residence of a high official
- (literary) but
- however
- (literary) only
- just
点diǎnHSK 1o'clock
- o'clock
- a little
- point
- to touch briefly
- to tap
- to mark with a dot
- to check off (on a list)
- to order (food etc)
- to select
- to mention
- to bring up (a topic or person)
- to hint at
- to imply
- to administer (eye medicine etc) in drops
- to light (a fire, a lamp etc)
- to ignite
- to nod (one's head) in agreement
- to beckon by moving (one's hand) up and down
- point
- dot
- spot
- speck
- dot stroke in Chinese characters
- (math.) decimal point
- point in time or space
- (after a number) o'clock
- a small amount
- a bit
- (after a verb or adjective) a bit more
- classifier for small amounts
电话diànhuàHSK 1telephone
- telephone
- CL:部
- phone call
- CL:通
- phone number
电脑diànnǎoHSK 1computer
- computer
- CL:台
电视diànshìHSK 1television
- television
- TV
- CL:台,部
电影diànyǐngHSK 1movie
- movie
- film
- CL:部
电影院diànyǐngyuànHSK 1cinema
- cinema
- movie theater
- CL:家,座
店diànHSK 1inn
- inn
- old-style hotel (CL:家)
- (bound form) shop
- store
东西dōngxiHSK 1thing
- thing
- stuff
- person
- CL:个,件
都dōuHSK 1all
- all
- both
- entirely
- (used for emphasis) even
- already
- (not) at all
- capital city
- metropolis
- surname Du
读dúHSK 1to read out
- to read out
- to read aloud
- to read
- to attend (school)
- to study (a subject in school)
- to pronounce
- comma
- phrase marked by pause
读书dúshūHSK 1to read a book
- to read a book
- to study
- to attend school
对duìHSK 1right
- right
- correct
- towards
- at
- for
- concerning
- regarding
- to treat (sb a certain way)
- to face
- (bound form) opposite
- facing
- matching
- to match together
- to adjust
- to fit
- to suit
- to answer
- to reply
- to add
- to pour in (a fluid)
- to check
- to compare
- classifier: couple
- pair
对不起duìbuqǐHSK 1I'm sorry
- I'm sorry
- excuse me
- I beg your pardon
- to let (sb) down
- to disappoint
多duōHSK 1many
- many
- much
- more
- a lot of
- too many
- in excess
- (after a numeral) ... odd
- how (to what extent) (Taiwan pr. )
- (bound form) multi-
- poly-
多少duōshaoHSK 1how much?
- how much?
- how many?
- (phone number, student ID etc) what number?
儿子érziHSK 1son
二èrHSK 1two
- two
- 2
- (Beijing dialect) stupid
饭fànHSK 1cooked rice
- cooked rice
- CL:碗
- meal
- CL:顿
- (loanword) fan
- devotee
饭店fàndiànHSK 1restaurant
- restaurant
- hotel
- CL:家
房间fángjiānHSK 1room
Stories that use these HSK 2 words
Each one is a Fluentide Beginner (HSK 2) story, written inside that word band. Press play; the first few need no account.
HSK 2 Chinese listening episodes
HSK 3 Chinese listening episodes
HSK 4 Chinese listening episodes
HSK 5+ Chinese listening episodes
How to actually learn HSK 2 vocabulary
Reading a word on a page and catching it at speed in a sentence are different skills. The HSK listening section tests the second.
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The method in practice
Hear HSK 2 vocabulary in real Mandarin
Each HSK 2 episode uses this word band, with the transcript, pinyin and line-by-line English. Five free episodes after a one-tap magic-link sign-in — no password, no payment.