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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 851900 of 1,193 · page 18 of 24

眼镜yǎnjìngHSK 3

spectacles

  • spectacles
  • eyeglasses
  • CL:副
要求yāoqiúHSK 3

to request

  • to request
  • to require
  • requirement
  • to stake a claim
  • to ask
  • to demand
  • CL:点
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
爷爷yéyeHSK 3

(coll.) paternal grandfather

  • (coll.) paternal grandfather
  • grandpa
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
一般yībānHSK 3

same

  • same
  • ordinary
  • so-so
  • common
  • general
  • generally
  • in general
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
一边yībiānHSK 3

one side

  • one side
  • either side
  • on the one hand
  • on the other hand
  • doing while
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
一定yīdìngHSK 3

surely

  • surely
  • certainly
  • necessarily
  • fixed
  • a certain (extent etc)
  • given
  • particular
  • must
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
一共yīgòngHSK 3

in total

一会儿yīhuìrHSK 3

a moment

  • a moment
  • a while
  • in a moment
  • now...now...
  • also pr.
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
一样yīyàngHSK 3

same

  • same
  • like
  • equal to
  • the same as
  • just like
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
一直yīzhíHSK 3

straight (in a straight line)

  • straight (in a straight line)
  • continuously
  • always
  • all the way through
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
以后yǐhòuHSK 3

after

  • after
  • later
  • afterwards
  • following
  • later on
  • in the future
以前yǐqiánHSK 3

before

以为yǐwéiHSK 3

to think

  • to think
  • to believe (often with the implication that the belief is mistaken – unless referring to one's own current belief)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
音乐yīnyuèHSK 3

music

银行yínhángHSK 3

bank

应该yīnggāiHSK 3

ought to

影响yǐngxiǎngHSK 3

influence

  • influence
  • effect
  • to influence
  • to affect (usually adversely)
  • to disturb
  • CL:股
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
yòngHSK 3

to use

  • to use
  • to make use of
  • to employ
  • (coverb) with
  • using
  • to need
  • to have to (usu. used in the negative or in questions)
  • usefulness
  • utility
  • (bound form) expense
  • outlay
  • (courteous) to eat
  • to drink
  • (literary) hence
  • therefore
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
游戏yóuxìHSK 3

game

有名yǒumíngHSK 3

famous

yòuHSK 3

(once) again

  • (once) again
  • also
  • both... and...
  • and yet
  • (used for emphasis) anyway
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
遇到yùdàoHSK 3

to meet

愿意yuànyìHSK 3

to wish

  • to wish
  • to want
  • ready
  • willing (to do sth)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
月亮yuèliangHSK 3

the moon

yuèHSK 3

generic word for peoples or states of south China or south Asia at different historical periods

  • generic word for peoples or states of south China or south Asia at different historical periods
  • abbr. for Vietnam 越南
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
yúnHSK 3

(classical) to say

  • (classical) to say
zhànHSK 3

station

  • station
  • to stand
  • to halt
  • to stop
  • branch of a company or organization
  • website
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
照顾zhàoguHSK 3

to take care of

  • to take care of
  • to show consideration
  • to attend to
  • to look after
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
照片zhàopiànHSK 3

photograph

照相机zhàoxiàngjīHSK 3

camera

着急zháojíHSK 3

to worry

  • to worry
  • to feel anxious
  • to feel a sense of urgency
  • to be in a hurry
  • Taiwan pr.
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
zhīHSK 3

variant of 只

中间zhōngjiānHSK 3

the middle

  • the middle
  • the inside
  • in the middle
  • within
  • between
  • among
  • during
  • in the meantime
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
终于zhōngyúHSK 3

at last

  • at last
  • in the end
  • finally
  • eventually
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
zhǒngHSK 3

seed

  • seed
  • species
  • kind
  • type
  • classifier for types, kinds, sorts
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
重要zhòngyàoHSK 3

important

周末zhōumòHSK 3

weekend

主要zhǔyàoHSK 3

main

注意zhùyìHSK 3

to take note of

  • to take note of
  • to pay attention to
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
zhùHSK 3

surname Zhu

  • surname Zhu
字典zìdiǎnHSK 3

Chinese character dictionary (containing entries for single characters, contrasted with a 词典, which has entries for words of one or more characters)

  • Chinese character dictionary (containing entries for single characters, contrasted with a 词典, which has entries for words of one or more characters)
  • (coll.) dictionary
  • CL:本
自己zìjǐHSK 3

oneself

总是zǒngshìHSK 3

always

最近zuìjìnHSK 3

recently

作业zuòyèHSK 3

school assignment

  • school assignment
  • homework
  • work
  • task
  • operation
  • CL:个
  • to operate
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
作用zuòyòngHSK 3

to act on

  • to act on
  • to affect
  • action
  • function
  • activity
  • impact
  • result
  • effect
  • purpose
  • intent
  • (suffix) -ation, -tion etc, as in 抑制作用, inhibition
HSK 2

bar (loanword) (serving drinks, or providing Internet access etc)

  • bar (loanword) (serving drinks, or providing Internet access etc)
  • to puff (on a pipe etc)
  • (onom.) bang
  • abbr. for 贴吧
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
báiHSK 2

surname Bai

bǎiHSK 2

surname Bai

帮助bāngzhùHSK 2

assistance

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