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HSK 4 Vocabulary

HSK 4 Vocabulary List: 1,200 Words

HSK 4 assumes 1,200 cumulative words — 600 of them new at this level. They cover opinion, comparison, and evaluation — the abstract vocabulary you need to say what you think, not just what happened.

By Haoshan HongNative Mandarin speakerUpdated July 2026

What is on the HSK 4 word list?

The HSK word lists are published and cumulative, which is what makes the exam a finite target. HSK 4 assumes 1,200 words in total — 600 of them introduced at this level.

They cover opinion, comparison, and evaluation — the abstract vocabulary you need to say what you think, not just what happened.

HSK proficiency ladderThe six HSK levels with cumulative vocabulary requirements: HSK 1 requires 150 words, HSK 2 requires 300, HSK 3 requires 600, HSK 4 requires 1,200, HSK 5 requires 2,500, and HSK 6 requires 5,000 words. Word counts follow the official Hanban HSK 2.0 standard.HSK levels by cumulative vocabularyHSK 1beginner150 wordsHSK 2elementary300 wordsHSK 3pre-intermediate600 wordsHSK 4intermediate1,200 wordsHSK 5upper-intermediate2,500 wordsHSK 6advanced5,000 wordsSource: Hanban HSK 2.0 standard
Cumulative vocabulary required at each HSK level — bar width is proportional to the word count.

HSK 4 word list

All 1,193 entries below, straight from the official Hanban HSK 2.0 list. The 598 words new at HSK 4 come first, then earlier levels.

Pinyin and definitions come from CC-CEDICT. Tap any word to see its other senses without leaving the list. Words with a full Fluentide entry — character breakdown, usage notes, example sentences — link out from there.

Showing 701750 of 1,193 · page 15 of 24

huànHSK 3

to exchange

  • to exchange
  • to change (clothes etc)
  • to substitute
  • to switch
  • to convert (currency)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
huángHSK 3

surname Huang or Hwang

  • surname Huang or Hwang
会议huìyìHSK 3

meeting

或者huòzhěHSK 3

or

机会jīhuìHSK 3

opportunity

HSK 3

extremely

  • extremely
  • pole (geography, physics)
  • utmost
  • top
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
几乎jīhūHSK 3

almost

记得jìdeHSK 3

to remember

季节jìjiéHSK 3

time

检查jiǎncháHSK 3

inspection

  • inspection
  • to examine
  • to inspect
  • CL:次
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
简单jiǎndānHSK 3

simple

见面jiànmiànHSK 3

to meet

健康jiànkāngHSK 3

health

jiǎngHSK 3

to speak

  • to speak
  • to explain
  • to negotiate
  • to emphasize
  • to be particular about
  • as far as sth is concerned
  • speech
  • lecture
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
juéHSK 3

surname Jue

jiǎoHSK 3

foot

  • foot
  • leg (of an animal or an object)
  • base (of an object)
  • CL:双,只
  • classifier for kicks
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
jiàoHSK 3

surname Jiao

jiēHSK 3

to receive

  • to receive
  • to answer (the phone)
  • to meet or welcome sb
  • to connect
  • to catch
  • to join
  • to extend
  • to take one's turn on duty
  • to take over for sb
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
街道jiēdàoHSK 3

street

  • street
  • CL:条
  • subdistrict
  • residential district
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
节目jiémùHSK 3

(TV or radio) program

  • (TV or radio) program
  • show
  • item
  • act
  • segment
  • number (on the program of a concert, variety show or cultural event)
  • a planned activity (in one's schedule)
  • CL:个,场,项,台,套,档
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
节日jiérìHSK 3

holiday

结婚jiéhūnHSK 3

to marry

结束jiéshùHSK 3

termination

  • termination
  • to finish
  • to end
  • to conclude
  • to close
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
解决jiějuéHSK 3

to solve

  • to solve
  • to resolve
  • to settle (a problem)
  • to eliminate
  • to wipe out (an enemy, bandits etc)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
jièHSK 3

to borrow

  • to borrow
  • (used in combination with 给 or 出 etc) to lend
  • to make use of
  • to avail oneself of
  • (sometimes followed by 着) by
  • with
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
经常jīngchángHSK 3

frequently

  • frequently
  • constantly
  • regularly
  • often
  • day-to-day
  • everyday
  • daily
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
经过jīngguòHSK 3

to pass

  • to pass
  • to go through
  • process
  • course
  • CL:个
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
经理jīnglǐHSK 3

manager

jiǔHSK 3

(of a period of time) long

jiùHSK 3

old

  • old
  • opposite: new 新
  • former
  • worn (with age)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
举行jǔxíngHSK 3

to hold (a meeting, ceremony etc)

  • to hold (a meeting, ceremony etc)
句子jùziHSK 3

sentence

决定juédìngHSK 3

to decide (to do something)

  • to decide (to do something)
  • to resolve
  • decision
  • CL:个,项
  • certainly
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
可爱kěàiHSK 3

adorable

HSK 3

thirsty

HSK 3

quarter (hour)

  • quarter (hour)
  • moment
  • to carve
  • to engrave
  • to cut
  • oppressive
  • classifier for short time intervals
客人kèrénHSK 3

visitor

空调kōngtiáoHSK 3

air conditioning

  • air conditioning
  • air conditioner (including units that have a heating mode)
  • CL:台
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
kǒuHSK 3

mouth

  • mouth
  • classifier for things with mouths (people, domestic animals, cannons, wells etc)
  • classifier for bites or mouthfuls
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
HSK 3

to cry

裤子kùziHSK 3

pants

筷子kuàiziHSK 3

chopsticks

lánHSK 3

surname Lan

lǎoHSK 3

prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity

  • prefix used before the surname of a person or a numeral indicating the order of birth of the children in a family or to indicate affection or familiarity
  • old (of people)
  • venerable (person)
  • experienced
  • of long standing
  • always
  • all the time
  • of the past
  • very
  • outdated
  • (of meat etc) tough
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
了解liǎojiěHSK 3

to understand

  • to understand
  • to realize
  • to find out
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
离开líkāiHSK 3

to depart

礼物lǐwùHSK 3

gift

历史lìshǐHSK 3

history

liǎnHSK 3

face

练习liànxíHSK 3

to practice

  • to practice
  • exercise
  • drill
  • practice
  • CL:个
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →

How to actually learn HSK 4 vocabulary

A word list is a checklist, not a method. Recognising a word on a page is a different skill from catching it at speed in a sentence — and the HSK listening section only tests the second one.

1

Read the list once, do not memorise it

You are looking for which words feel unfamiliar, not trying to learn them here.

2

Listen at your level daily

Fluentide's HSK 4 episodes are written inside this vocabulary band, so the words arrive in sentences instead of flashcards.

3

Look a word up only after you have heard it

A word you have already met in audio sticks in one reading. A word you meet cold takes many.

4

Come back to this list monthly

Use it as a progress check, not a study plan. The gaps you find are what to listen for next.

The method in practice

Hear HSK 4 vocabulary in real Mandarin

Every HSK 4 episode is written inside this word band and read at HSK 4 speed, so words stick because you have heard them in a sentence. Full transcript, pinyin toggle, and line-by-line English on every episode. Five free episodes after a one-tap magic-link sign-in — no password, no payment.

More HSK 4