HSK 6 Vocabulary List: 5,000 Words
HSK 6 assumes 5,000 cumulative words — 2500 of them new at this level. They cover chengyu, formal and classical register, and the layered vocabulary of serious written Chinese.
By Haoshan HongNative Mandarin speakerUpdated July 2026
What is on the HSK 6 word list?
The HSK word lists are published and cumulative, which is what makes the exam a finite target. HSK 6 assumes 5,000 words in total — 2,500 of them introduced at this level.
They cover chengyu, formal and classical register, and the layered vocabulary of serious written Chinese.
HSK 6 word list
All 4,991 entries below, straight from the official Hanban HSK 2.0 list. The 2,500 words new at HSK 6 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 3151–3200 of 4,991 · page 64 of 100
谜语míyǔHSK 5riddle
- riddle
- conundrum
- CL:条
秘密mìmìHSK 5secret
- secret
- private
- confidential
- clandestine
- a secret (CL:个)
秘书mìshūHSK 5secretary
- secretary
密切mìqièHSK 5close
- close
- familiar
- intimate
- closely (related)
- to foster close ties
- to pay close attention
蜜蜂mìfēngHSK 5bee
- bee
- honeybee
- CL:只,群
棉花miánhuaHSK 5cotton
- cotton
面对miànduìHSK 5to face
- to face
- to confront
面积miànjīHSK 5area (of a floor, piece of land etc)
- area (of a floor, piece of land etc)
- surface area
- tract of land
面临miànlínHSK 5to face sth
- to face sth
- to be confronted with
苗条miáotiaoHSK 5(of a woman) slim
- (of a woman) slim
- slender
- graceful
描写miáoxiěHSK 5to describe
- to describe
- to depict
- to portray
- depiction
- portrayal
秒miǎoHSK 5second (unit of time)
- second (unit of time)
- arc second (angular measurement unit)
- (coll.) instantly
民主mínzhǔHSK 5democracy
- democracy
- democratic
名牌míngpáiHSK 5famous brand
- famous brand
- nameplate
- name tag
名片míngpiànHSK 5(business) card
- (business) card
名胜míngshèngHSK 5a place famous for its scenery or historical relics
- a place famous for its scenery or historical relics
- scenic spot
- CL:处
明确míngquèHSK 5clear-cut
- clear-cut
- definite
- explicit
- to clarify
- to specify
- to make definite
明显míngxiǎnHSK 5clear
- clear
- distinct
- obvious
明信片míngxìnpiànHSK 5postcard
- postcard
明星míngxīngHSK 5star
- star
- celebrity
命令mìnglìngHSK 5order
- order
- command
- CL:道,个
命运mìngyùnHSK 5fate
- fate
- destiny
- CL:个
摸mōHSK 5to feel with the hand
- to feel with the hand
- to touch
- to stroke
- to grope
- to steal
- to abstract
模仿mófǎngHSK 5to imitate
- to imitate
- to copy
- to emulate
- to mimic
- model
模糊móhuHSK 5vague
- vague
- indistinct
- fuzzy
- to blur
- to obscure
- to confuse
- to mix up
摩托车mótuōchēHSK 5(loanword) motorbike
- (loanword) motorbike
- motorcycle
- CL:辆,部
陌生mòshēngHSK 5strange
- strange
- unfamiliar
某mǒuHSK 5some
- some
- a certain
- sb or sth indefinite
- such-and-such
木头mùtouHSK 5slow-witted
- slow-witted
- blockhead
- log (of wood, timber etc)
- CL:块,根
目标mùbiāoHSK 5target
- target
- goal
- objective
- CL:个
目录mùlùHSK 5catalog
- catalog
- table of contents
- directory (on computer hard drive)
- list
- contents
目前mùqiánHSK 5at the present time
- at the present time
- currently
哪怕nǎpàHSK 5even
- even
- even if
- even though
- no matter how
难怪nánguàiHSK 5(it's) no wonder (that...)
- (it's) no wonder (that...)
- (it's) not surprising (that)
难看nánkànHSK 5ugly
- ugly
- unsightly
脑袋nǎodaiHSK 5head
- head
- skull
- brains
- mental capability
- CL:颗,个
内科nèikēHSK 5internal medicine
- internal medicine
- general medicine
嫩nènHSK 5young and tender
- young and tender
- (of food) tender
- lightly cooked
- (of color) light
- (of a person) inexperienced
- unskilled
能干nénggànHSK 5capable
- capable
- competent
能源néngyuánHSK 5energy sources
- energy sources
- energy
年代niándàiHSK 5a decade of a century (e.g. the Sixties)
- a decade of a century (e.g. the Sixties)
- age
- era
- period
- CL:个
年纪niánjìHSK 5age
- age
- CL:把,个
念niànHSK 5variant of 念, to read aloud
- variant of 念, to read aloud
宁可nìngkěHSK 5preferably
- preferably
- one would prefer to...(or not to...)
- would rather
- (would) be better to
- (to pick) the lesser of two evils
牛仔裤niúzǎikùHSK 5jeans
- jeans
- CL:条
农民nóngmínHSK 5peasant
- peasant
- farmer
农业nóngyèHSK 5agriculture
- agriculture
- farming
浓nóngHSK 5concentrated
- concentrated
- dense
- strong (smell etc)
女士nu:3shìHSK 5lady
- lady
- madam
- CL:个,位
- Miss
- Ms
偶然ǒuránHSK 5incidentally
- incidentally
- occasional
- occasionally
- by chance
- randomly
How to actually learn HSK 6 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.
Read the list once, do not memorise it
You are looking for which words feel unfamiliar, not trying to learn them here.
Listen at your level daily
Fluentide's HSK 6 episodes are written inside this vocabulary band, so the words arrive in sentences instead of flashcards.
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.
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 6 vocabulary in real Mandarin
Every HSK 6 episode is written inside this word band and read at HSK 6 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.