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HSK 6 Vocabulary

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 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 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 49014950 of 4,991 · page 99 of 100

妈妈māmaHSK 1

mama

HSK 1

(coll.) what?

mǎiHSK 1

to buy

māoHSK 1

cat (CL:只)

  • cat (CL:只)
  • (dialect) to hide oneself
  • (loanword) (coll.) modem
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
méiHSK 1

(negative prefix for verbs) have not

  • (negative prefix for verbs) have not
  • not
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
没关系méiguānxiHSK 1

it doesn't matter

米饭mǐfànHSK 1

(cooked) rice

名字míngziHSK 1

name (of a person or thing)

  • name (of a person or thing)
  • CL:个
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
明天míngtiānHSK 1

tomorrow

HSK 1

how

HSK 1

surname Na

neHSK 1

particle indicating that a previously asked question is to be applied to the preceding word ("What about ...?", "And ...?")

  • particle indicating that a previously asked question is to be applied to the preceding word ("What about ...?", "And ...?")
  • particle for inquiring about location ("Where is ...?")
  • particle signaling a pause, to emphasize the preceding words and allow the listener time to take them on board ("ok?", "are you with me?")
  • (at the end of a declarative sentence) particle indicating continuation of a state or action
  • particle indicating strong affirmation
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
néngHSK 1

surname Neng

HSK 1

you (informal, as opposed to courteous 您)

  • you (informal, as opposed to courteous 您)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
niánHSK 1

surname Nian

女儿nu:3érHSK 1

daughter

朋友péngyouHSK 1

friend

漂亮piàoliangHSK 1

pretty

苹果píngguǒHSK 1

Apple (American tech company)

HSK 1

seven

前面qiánmiànHSK 1

ahead

  • ahead
  • in front
  • preceding
  • above
  • also pr.
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
qiánHSK 1

surname Qian

qǐngHSK 1

to ask

  • to ask
  • to invite
  • please (do sth)
  • to treat (to a meal etc)
  • to request
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
HSK 1

to go

  • to go
  • to go to (a place)
  • (of a time etc) last
  • just passed
  • to send
  • to remove
  • to get rid of
  • to reduce
  • to be apart from in space or time
  • to die (euphemism)
  • to play (a part)
  • (when used either before or after a verb) to go in order to do sth
  • (after a verb of motion indicates movement away from the speaker)
  • (used after certain verbs to indicate detachment or separation)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
HSK 1

to warm up

  • to warm up
  • to heat up
  • hot (of weather)
  • heat
  • fervent
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
rénHSK 1

person

认识rènshiHSK 1

to know

  • to know
  • to recognize
  • to be familiar with
  • to get acquainted with sb
  • knowledge
  • understanding
  • awareness
  • cognition
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
HSK 1

abbr. for 日本, Japan

sānHSK 1

surname San

商店shāngdiànHSK 1

store

shǎngHSK 1

used in 上声

上午shàngwǔHSK 1

morning

shǎoHSK 1

few

  • few
  • less
  • to lack
  • to be missing
  • to stop (doing sth)
  • seldom
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
shéiHSK 1

who

什么shénmeHSK 1

what?

shíHSK 1

ten

时候shíhouHSK 1

time

shìHSK 1

to be (followed by substantives only)

  • to be (followed by substantives only)
  • correct
  • right
  • true
  • (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well
  • (adverb for emphatic assertion)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
shūHSK 1

abbr. for 书经

shuǐHSK 1

surname Shui

水果shuǐguǒHSK 1

fruit

睡觉shuìjiàoHSK 1

to go to bed

说话shuōhuàHSK 1

to speak

  • to speak
  • to say
  • to talk
  • to gossip
  • to tell stories
  • talk
  • word
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
HSK 1

four

suìHSK 1

years old

HSK 1

(third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he

  • (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he
  • him
  • his
  • (bound form) other
  • another
  • some other (as in 他日 and 他人)
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
HSK 1

she

tàiHSK 1

highest

  • highest
  • greatest
  • too (much)
  • very
  • extremely
Character breakdown, usage notes and examples →
天气tiānqìHSK 1

weather

yǐnHSK 1

smile (archaic)

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.

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 6 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 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.

More HSK 6