The content on this site is targeting the “old” HSK 2.0 test which is currently still in use for HSK level 1. We will add similar information for HSK 3.0 once available. For HSK 3.0 we do, however, already have a translated vocabulary list.
To quickly get you where you want to get, here are further pages for HSK 1 you might want to look at:
- HSK 1 Vocabulary List for HSK 2.0
- HSK 1 Example Sentences for HSK 2.0
- HSK 1 Youtube Video for HSK 2.0
- HSK 1 Vocabulary List for HSK 3.0
- HSK 1 Flashcards for HSK 2.0
- HSK 1 Flashcards for HSK 3.0
HSK 1 exam structure
The HSK 1 test is structured into a listening and reading part. The exam lasts 40 minutes starting with 5 minutes of filling in your personal details on the exam sheet followed by around 17-18 minutes for each of the two parts (listening and reading). Both listening and reading consist of 20 questions each totalling in 40 questions for the test overall. Below we have laid out the test structure in more detail so you know what to expect:
HSK 1 listening part
Questions 1-5: You listen to a sentence or short phrase twice and then need to determine whether the image shown has anything to do with the text you listened to or not.
Questions 6-10: You again need to listen to a sentence or short text twice and then determine, which of the three pictures presented to you on the test sheet best corresponds to what you heard.
Questions 11-15: You listen to a dialog twice. On the exam paper you will see various images with letters. You are then required to enter the letter for the picture that corresponds best to the dialog you’ve listened to into the box next to the question number.
Questions 16-20: You listen to a sentence/question pair twice. First a sentence or short phrase is read by one voice followed by another voice asking a question based on that sentence. You then need to determine which of the options presented to you on the exam paper best answers the question.
HSK 1 reading part
Questions 21-25: You are presented with a picture and a vocabulary or phrase and you need to determine whether or not the two have anything to do with each other.
Questions 26-30: On the exam paper you see several images with letters (more than in the picture above). Your task is then to read the sentence or phrase and put in the letter for the image that best corresponds with the phrase.
Questions 31-35: You see five questions on the left with five answers on the right. Each of the answers has a letter associated with it and your task is to match up each question with the right answer by putting the correct letter in the box next to the question.
Questions 36-40: The final task is to take some words presented on the top (all with letters in front of them) and correctly put them into sentences by adding the corresponding letter into the gap.
How to prepare for HSK 1
There is no right or wrong way to prepare for HSK 1. The most important thing is to familiarize yourself with all 150 HSK 1 vocabularies and with the grammar patterns for HSK 1, both of which are described in more detail below. Apart from that, there are a couple of things that might help you with your preparation:
HSK 1 flashcards
Flashcards are a great way to learn vocabularies and with the number of websites and apps providing flashcards nowadays, it’s difficult to know which one to pick. We suggest you’ll use Anki which is a free flashcard application with countless flashcard decks for any language. Simply download the application to your computer or download their app to your mobile phone (small payment required for iOS). Then either purchase Pinhok’s HSK vocabulary deck online or search for one of the free HSK decks within the shared Anki decks and you should be ready to go!
HSK 1 practice tests
Once you have internalized all 150 HSK 1 vocabularies and the grammar patterns, mock exams are probably the most efficient way to prepare for the exam itself. Below you can find 4 websites that provide a number of past exam papers for you to go through:
- Confucius Institute of Manchester University
- Hanban / Chinesetest.cn
- Confucius Institute of Emory University
- China Education Center
HSK 1 books
In terms of books, there are plenty of books to choose from. For vocabulary books, you can go to our partner site Pinhok Languages to find their popular HSK vocabulary books. This should cover all vocabulary related needs you have.
The second type of books are HSK 1 mock exams. Those exams are very similar to the practice tests listed above but any one of those books usually contains a lot more of them. You can purchase those kinds of books in any good book shop if you are in Mainland China or on Amazon if you are living abroad.
HSK 1 grammar
There is a certain number of vocabulary and grammar patterns you have to know for passing HSK 1. You can see the words and patterns listed below as a kind of checklist to go through and make sure you know each of the characters, understand how to use them in a sentence and understand the patterns further down and what they mean. For more examples of HSK 1 sentences take a look at our HSK 1 example sentences page.
Pronouns
| Personal Pronouns | 我，你，他，她，我们，你们，他们，她们 |
| Demonstrative Pronouns | 这，这儿，那，那儿 |
| Interrogative Pronouns | 谁，哪，哪儿，什么，多少，几，怎么，怎么样 |
Numbers
| Time | 9点25分 |
| 2013年2月三日 | |
| 星期五 | |
| Age | 我今年25岁 |
| Amount of Money | 30块 |
| Number | 我的电话是47382940 |
Measure Words
| After a Number | 4个 |
| 7本 | |
| After 这，那，几 | 这个 |
| 那本 | |
| 这些 | |
| 几个 |
Adverbs
| Negation | 不: 我不喜欢你 |
| 没: 我没有钱 | |
| Degree | 很: 我很喜欢你 |
| 太: 太多了 | |
| Range | 都: 我们都很喜欢去买衣服 |
Conjunction
| 和 | 我和你 |
Preposition
| 在 | 我在北京 |
Auxiliary Verb
| 会 | 我会做饭 |
| 能 | 我今天晚上不能来 |
Auxiliary Word
| Structure | 的 | 这是我的书 |
| Mood | 了 | 我来了 |
| 吗 | 你喜欢我吗? | |
| 呢 | 他在那儿呢? |
Interjection
| 喂 | 喂，你好 |
Declarative Sentence
| Affirmative | 明天星期五 |
| 我认识你 | |
| 今天天气很好 |
| Denial | 不 | 他不在医院 |
| 没 | 她没去买东西 |
Questions
| 吗 | 你喜欢我吗? |
| 呢 | 我有电脑，你呢? |
| 谁 | 你喜欢谁? |
| 哪 | 哪一本书是你的? |
| 哪儿 | 你昨天去了哪儿? |
| 什么 | 你想喝什么茶? |
| 多少 | 这本书多少钱? |
| 几 | 你今年几岁了? |
| 怎么 | 这个菜怎么做? |
| 怎么样 | 你今天怎么样? |
Imperative Sentence
| 请 | 请坐 |
Exclamatory Sentence
| 太 | 太好了 |
Special Sentence Patterns
| 是 Sentence | 他是北京人 |
| 她是我的老师 | |
| 有 Sentence | 她有钱 |
| 我有43本书 |
| 是…的 Sentence | Time | 我是昨天回来的 |
| Place | 我是在火车站吃饭的 | |
| Method | 他是坐火车回来的 |
State of Action
| Current Activity | 在…呢 | 我在看电视呢 |
HSK 1 vocabulary list
To get an HSK 1 vocabulary list in book form, please you can go to our partner site Pinhok Languages to find their popular HSK vocabulary books. This should cover all vocabulary related needs you have.
You can also find all vocabularies for HSK 1 in our HSK 1 vocabulary list and take a look at example sentences on our HSK 1 example sentences page.
Finally, there’s also a Youtube video available containing all HSK 1 vocabularies so you can directly practice the pronunciation for all words.
Taking the test
We have answered most of the general questions regarding HSK test on our HSK Frequently Asked Questions page. Below are a couple of questions and topics that are HSK 1 specific:
HSK 1 scores
There are 100 points for each of the two parts available, 100 points for listening and 100 points for reading. Therefore, a score of 200 would be maximum points. 120 points are needed to pass HSK 1.
HSK 1 exam dates
You can find the official HSK exam dates by going to the official HSK website from Hanban (Chinese only unfortunately, but a good learning experience). To make sense of that page, a couple of terms explained:
| 新汉语水平考试(HSK) | This is the normal HSK test |
| 新增汉语水平网络考试(HSK) | This refers to the new HSK online test |
| 考试时间 | Time of test |
| 考试科目 | Test subject |
| 报名截止日期 | Registration deadline |
| 纸笔考试 | Pen and paper test |
| 网络考试 | Online test |
| 成绩公布日期 | Date the results come out |
How much does HSK 1 cost?
Fees for HSK tests vary depending on country and test centre. When writing this article (March 27, 2019), the fee for HSK 1 at the Confucius Institute in Nebraska was USD 20, at Hong Kong University it was HKD 260. So costs do vary and will probably change over time, simply contact your test centre or teacher for more information.
Can I take HSK 1 online?
Yes and no. There is now a 网络考试 available, however, to take that test, you would still have to go to a test centre that supports computer based HSK tests and take the test there. So strictly speaking, you would take the test online (as in on a website or web application), but not from the comfort of your home. For details on that it’s best to talk to your closest test centre.
Where can I take the HSK 1 test?
You can use the “Search Test Center” functionality on Chinesetest.cn to look for a test centre closest to you. If you want to take the test on a computer, make sure the test centre supports that option.
How can I register for HSK 1?
You can either register online on Chinesetest.cn or directly at the test centre closest to you.