HSK 2 study guide: the new test, its 500 words and an eight-week plan

Your test date decides which HSK 2 you sit

The 13 December sitting is the first regular sitting of the new HSK, known as HSK 3.0, Chinese Testing International announced in September. Earlier sittings, such as 7 November, use the old HSK 2.0 paper.

So before you pick a word list, check the date on your booking. The old HSK 2 list has 300 words, and the new one has 500.

For 13 December, CTI takes paper bookings until midnight Beijing time on 16 November. Computer bookings close on 3 December, but your centre may stop sooner.

Expect to book a single written paper. CTI's pilot rules tied a speaking paper only to HSK 3 to 6. Its launch notice doesn't repeat the rule, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong lists no HSK 2 speaking paper for that date.

Results follow in late December for the computer test and in mid-January on paper.

If December is too close, aim for a 2027 date. CTI hadn't published next year's calendar when we checked on 27 October. Our HSK exam guide covers fees, centres and the rules on the day for every level.

What's on the new HSK 2 test?

HSK 2 checks that you can handle simple, direct exchanges about everyday life. CLEC, which writes the syllabus, lists the level's tasks. They include asking and answering about people, events and things, talking about the weather, describing a place, and everyday politeness like thanks and apologies.

The paper still has 60 questions, but it now has three sections. We put the official sample next to CTI's description of the old paper:

Sources: the cover of CLEC's HSK 2 sample paper and CTI's HSK page, Level 2 tab, checked 27 October. Both totals include five minutes for your details and three for copying your listening answers.

So listening loses ten questions, and writing takes their place. Here's each part as we read it on the sample:

• Listening, 1–5. You hear a sentence and pick the matching picture from three.
• Listening, 6–15. You hear short dialogues and match each one to a picture, in two sets of five.
• Listening, 16–25. You hear a dialogue and a question, then pick one of three printed answers.
• Reading, 26–30. You match each sentence to a picture.
• Reading, 31–35. You fill each gap from a bank of words.
• Reading, 36–45. You match each sentence to its reply, in two sets of five.
• Reading, 46–50. You read a short text and answer a starred question about it.
• Writing, 51–55. You complete a character by picking its missing part from six.
• Writing, 56–60. You write the missing character in a sentence, with its pinyin as the clue.

Two things changed besides writing. The old paper's true-or-false listening part is gone, and listening drops from four parts to three.

What stays is the pinyin. Like HSK 1, the HSK 2 paper prints pinyin over every line of Chinese, writing questions included. That helps you read, but you still have to write the character itself.

Here's how the sample introduces the fill-in task. The pinyin shi sits over the gap, and the answer is 是:

• "Would you like tea or coffee?" 你想喝茶还是喝咖啡？ Nǐ xiǎng hē chá háishi hē kāfēi?

The paper takes an hour, and you hear everything twice

Expect HSK 2 to be a morning test, though CTI hasn't published the December timetable. In its September pilot timetable, HSK 2 started at 9 am local time and ran about 60 minutes.

The Chinese University of Hong Kong's notes for 13 December list the same start time. Check your own centre's times when you book.

Listening comes first and runs from a single recording. We timed every silence in CLEC's HSK 2 sample recording. Here's how its 18 minutes are spent:

Source: our silence timing of the HSK 2 recording in CLEC's sample pack, without playing it aloud. Each part's row includes its directions and a worked example.

Every recording plays twice, with a short pause in between. That's generous, but the gaps to answer are short. In part 1 you have eight seconds to pick a picture before the next item starts.

So use the first hearing to catch the topic and the second to catch the detail. If you miss one, mark a guess and move on, because the recording won't wait.

After listening, you get three minutes to copy your answers to the answer sheet. Reading and writing then run on the clock, each with its own time, so you can move around within a section.

Writing starts at HSK 2

The new paper is the first HSK to test your hand. The syllabus's first handwriting list covers HSK 1 and 2 together, with 100 characters, and HSK 2 is where you're tested on it.

The two writing tasks are short. In questions 51 to 55, you see a word in pinyin with one character half drawn, and pick the missing part. For "hour", 小时(xiǎoshí), you add the part 寸 to 日 to make 时(shí).

In questions 56 to 60, you write a whole character from its pinyin. Here's one from the sample, where the missing word is "my", 的(de):

• "I'm still on the road. My car broke down." 我还在路上，我的车坏了。 Wǒ hái zài lùshang, wǒ de chē huài le.

We checked the sample against the handwriting list. All five characters in the first task are on it, and four of the five you write in the second task.

The fifth is "wash", 洗(xǐ), from "wash your hands". It's on the HSK 2 list of characters to recognise, not the list to write. So the sample already asks for a character beyond the 100.

Reading is the bigger job. By HSK 2, you should recognise 371 characters. That's nearly four times the handwriting list.

So drill the 100 by hand until you can write them without looking. Our free HSK 1–2 characters PDF shows each one with its stroke order. Then practise writing the common characters on the reading list too, starting with everyday verbs like "wash". Our free HSK 2 writing workbook has all 371 characters on practice grids with pinyin and English.

Almost half the HSK 2 words are new to the exam

The new HSK 2 takes you to 500 words in all, up from 300 on the old exam.

We matched every word at the new HSK 2 against CTI's old lists, by written form. Here's where they came from:

Source: our count, matching CLEC's 2025 syllabus to CTI's HSK 2.0 lists by written form. A word listed twice, or also at HSK 1, counts once, so the 200 entries make 197 words.

So even if you studied the old HSK 2, more than half of this level is new to you.

The old HSK 3 words that dropped to HSK 2 are everyday ones. "Subway", 地铁(dìtiě), "restroom", 洗手间(xǐshǒujiān), and "comfortable", 舒服(shūfu), are all HSK 2 now.

The old HSK 2 list moved too. Of its 150 words, 62 went down to HSK 1, such as "phone", 手机(shǒujī), and "cheap", 便宜(piányi).

A few old HSK 2 words went up or changed shape. "Hotel", 宾馆(bīnguǎn), is now HSK 3, and HSK 2 teaches 酒店(jiǔdiàn) instead. "Bus", 公共汽车(gōnggòng qìchē), became the shorter 公交车(gōngjiāochē).

So what does that mean if you studied the old list? We worked it out:

• Finished the old HSK 2: you know about 290 of the new HSK 1 and 2 words, so about 210 are left.
• Finished the old HSK 1: about 350 are left, more than the whole old HSK 2.
• Finished the old HSK 3: even then, about 170 HSK 1 and 2 words are new to you.

Our HSK 2 word list has all 200 new words with pinyin and audio, and lets you mark the ones you already know.

The new words are about getting around

The 86 words that are new to the HSK aren't rare. We grouped them by topic, and they read like a first week in a Chinese city: getting out, finding places, buying tickets.

Here's how they split:

Source: our grouping of the 86 words, one topic per word, loosely following the syllabus's HSK 2 topics. The groups are a judgement call; the counts are exact.

The biggest group has a reason behind it. The syllabus's HSK 2 grammar list adds direction verbs: "come in", "go out", "come back" and ten more like them. Eleven of those are new words on the list.

The sample uses them straight away. Its worked example for the reply-matching part is:

• "He's gone out. He'll be back in a moment." 他出去了，一会儿就回来。 Tā chūqù le, yíhuìr jiù huílái.

A few more show the flavour of the list:

• "take a taxi", 打车(dǎchē)
• "entry ticket", 门票(ménpiào)
• "milk tea", 奶茶(nǎichá)
• "pharmacy", 药店(yàodiàn)
• "sorry, excuse me", 不好意思(bù hǎoyìsi)

There's good news hidden here too. We checked every new word's characters, and most use only characters from old HSK 1 and 2 words. "Take a taxi" is "hit" plus "car", and "entry ticket" is "door" plus "ticket".

So learn the new words as pairs of characters you've met. It's quicker than treating each one as a new shape.

The grammar adds comparisons, experiences and direction

HSK 2 grammar turns single facts into comparisons and stories. The syllabus's HSK 2 grammar list is short, and several of its patterns turn up in the sample paper.

These are the ones to know cold, each with an example we wrote:

• Comparing with 比. "Today is colder than yesterday." 今天比昨天冷。 Jīntiān bǐ zuótiān lěng.
• Experience with 过. "I've been to Beijing." 我去过北京。 Wǒ qùguo Běijīng.
• Ongoing states with 着. "The door is open." 门开着。 Mén kāizhe.
• When and how, with 是……的. "I came by subway." 我是坐地铁来的。 Wǒ shì zuò dìtiě lái de.
• Although, with 虽然……但是. "It's expensive, but it's delicious." 虽然很贵，但是很好吃。 Suīrán hěn guì, dànshì hěn hǎochī.
• How well, with 得. "He runs fast." 他跑得很快。 Tā pǎo de hěn kuài.
• Don't, with 别. "Don't run!" 别跑！ Bié pǎo!

The reading section never asks you to name a pattern. You just need to know that 别 tells someone not to do something, or that 过 means it has happened before.

So learn each pattern with one sentence you can say from memory. If a pattern is in your own mouth, you'll recognise it fast on the page.

Nobody knows the new pass mark yet

On the old HSK 2, you pass with 120 of 200 points, CTI's HSK page says. Your report shows a listening score, a reading score and a total, and only the total decides.

For the new paper, there's no published number. In late October, we found no score scale or pass mark in CTI's launch notice, its pilot notice, the syllabus or the sample paper. We also found nothing on how the new writing section is scored.

So mark your practice tests against a margin, not a line. Treat the old 60% as a floor, and keep going until you clear it comfortably.

Under the pilot rules, results come out about two weeks after a computer test and a month after a paper test, and they count for two years.

How to pass HSK 2: an eight-week plan

The number that decides your plan is words per week. There's no official study time for the new list. CTI's old HSK 2 syllabus expected two semesters of two to three class hours a week, for 300 words.

We worked out the weekly pace for two starting points and four dates. Each plan keeps the last two weeks for review and practice tests, except the 13 December plan, which keeps one:

Source: our arithmetic. "From the new HSK 1" means the 200 HSK 2 entries; "from the old HSK 1" means the 347 new HSK 1 and 2 words an old HSK 1 finisher still needs.

In our view, about 30 words a week is a steady pace at this level, or four or five a day with reviews. If you finished the old HSK 1, 13 December asks nearly twice that, and a 2027 date is the calmer choice.

Here's an eight-week plan from the new HSK 1, two weeks at a time. If you start this week, 13 December is seven weeks away, so fold weeks 7 and 8 together:

The topics are our grouping of the word list and the syllabus's HSK 2 grammar.

Each day, give it about 30 to 40 minutes: new words and reviews first, then one paper skill. Four habits make that time count:

• Learn every word by ear. Listening is the first section, and each item gives you only seconds to answer.
• Write five characters a day by hand. At that pace, the 100 on the handwriting list take about three weeks, with time left to review.
• Learn words in families. "Come", "go", "up", "down", "in" and "out" combine into most of the direction verbs, so learn them as one set.
• Say every grammar pattern out loud. One sentence per pattern, spoken daily, makes the reading section faster.

Free HSK 2 practice tests in the new format

There are only a few full papers in the new format, so use them carefully. Save at least one for the last fortnight, when timing matters most.

We checked each provider's own page. Here's what's available:

Sources: CLEC's sample pack, CTI's trial, HSK Mock's HSK 2 page and the Resources tab of CTI's HSK page, checked 27 October, except CTI's trial, checked 7 October.

One quirk in the official sample: its answer sheet numbers the writing answers 54 to 63, not 51 to 60. Match them by order and you'll mark correctly.

SayMei's practice test follows the published structure of the new HSK 2: the same parts, numbers of questions and timing, with words from the 2025 syllabus. SayMei wrote every question, so it's a practice test in the new HSK format, not an official paper.

It prints pinyin over the Chinese, like the real paper. You can play every listening track on its free listening page, and the back has a transcript and an answer key with model answers. Get the HSK 2 practice test.

Old papers are still useful for speed, but they use task types the new paper dropped, such as true-or-false listening, and they have no writing. For every other free paper, see our guide to free HSK practice tests.

So do the official sample first, because it's the real format. Keep SayMei's test for week 7, and a fresh paper for the final week.

Free resources for each part of the paper

These cover the whole test:

• Words. Our HSK 2 word list has the 200 new words with pinyin, English and audio, and a CSV for any flashcard app.
• Listening. HSK 2 listening practice has short dialogues with audio, pinyin and English, and HSK 2 conversation practice has more dialogues to say back.
• Reading. The HSK 2 workbooks, free with a SayMei account, include reading practice with dialogues, messages and short stories.
• Writing. The HSK 2 guided writing workbook builds from character parts to short messages, and the complete HSK 2 pack bundles it with the rest. For the characters alone, print our free HSK 1–2 characters PDF.
• Level and books. The level test estimates whether HSK 2 is the right level to book, and our HSK book guide checks which textbooks follow the new list.

If you're still on the first level, our HSK 1 study guide covers it the same way. HSK 3.0 explained shows what changed across all nine levels.

Speaking starts at HSK 3

HSK 2 doesn't test speaking, but the next level does. From 13 December, expect HSK 3 to come with a short speaking paper: you repeat sentences, describe photos and give two prepared answers.

So if HSK 3 is your next goal, start speaking now, while the words are simple. Our HSK 3 study guide walks through that paper minute by minute, and our speaking test guide covers every level. For the step after that, see the HSK 4 study guide.

Where SayMei fits, and where it doesn't

SayMei is an app for learning Mandarin by speaking with Mei Lin, an AI teacher. For HSK 2, its free parts do the most: the word list, the workbooks, the writing grids and the practice test.

Lessons with Mei Lin help you hear and use your words in real exchanges, which is what the HSK 2 tasks describe. SayMei Premium costs $5.99 a month for 200 minutes with Mei Lin.

Depending on your country, you start with a free first lesson or a free week that needs a card. We checked our pricing page on 27 October.

It isn't an exam simulator. SayMei has one HSK 2 practice test, it isn't official, and no one can turn its score into a pass or fail yet. Lessons don't check your handwriting either, so you'll need the workbook and a pencil for that.

HSK 2 doesn't test speaking, so lessons go beyond what this exam asks. If you only want the certificate, the free word list, a few timed papers and a stopwatch may be all you need.

What to do next

• Check your test date. It decides whether you study the old list or the new one.
• Book before your centre's deadline. It can fall days before CTI's, so look yours up today.
• Set your words per week. If the pace looks like cramming, move to a later date.
• Write characters from week 1. A few a day by hand adds up before the writing section.
• Do the official sample early. It shows which part of the paper needs the most work.

Start today with the first words on our HSK 2 word list.