Most YCT words are HSK 1–3 words: 92% of YCT 3 and 80% of YCT 4. But YCT 4, the top level, covers only 484 of the 997 different words in HSK 1–3. In vocabulary, YCT 1–2 are mostly HSK 1 words, YCT 3 reaches into HSK 2 and 3, and YCT 4 spreads across HSK 1–3 without covering any of them completely.
Each YCT word is counted at the lowest HSK 3.0 level that lists it.
| YCT | Words | HSK 1 | HSK 2 | HSK 3 | HSK 4–6 | Not an HSK word | HSK 1–3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YCT 1 | 80 | 69 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 98% |
| YCT 2 | 150 | 125 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 95% |
| YCT 3 | 300 | 182 | 62 | 33 | 9 | 14 | 92% |
| YCT 4 | 598 | 198 | 96 | 182 | 89 | 33 | 80% |
The other way round: how many words of each HSK level are already in the YCT list.
| YCT | HSK 1 | HSK 2 | HSK 3 | HSK 1–3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YCT 1 | 72 / 300 | 8 / 198 | 3 / 499 | 83 / 997 |
| YCT 2 | 128 / 300 | 13 / 198 | 8 / 499 | 149 / 997 |
| YCT 3 | 186 / 300 | 63 / 198 | 38 / 499 | 287 / 997 |
| YCT 4 | 201 / 300 | 97 / 198 | 186 / 499 | 484 / 997 |
A student who passes YCT 4 knows a good part of the HSK 1–3 vocabulary, but not all of it. Moving on to the HSK, the quickest path is to learn the HSK 1–3 words that are not in the YCT list, rather than starting HSK 1 from scratch.
The YCT is written for children, so its list includes words the HSK leaves for later, such as animals, sports and single-character colours like 红 and 黄, and a few everyday phrases that the HSK does not list as separate words. Those are shown below.
This page compares word lists only. The YCT and the HSK are different exams with their own formats, and there is no official equivalence between their levels.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 毕业 | bìyè | to graduate | HSK 4 |
| 鼻子 | bízi | nose | HSK 4 |
| 饼干 | bǐnggān | biscuit | HSK 4 |
| 窗户 | chuānghu | window | HSK 4 |
| 猜 | cāi | to guess | HSK 4 |
| 参观 | cānguān | to visit (a place) | HSK 4 |
| 多么 | duōme | how (in exclamations) | HSK 4 |
| 戴 | dài | to wear (glasses, a hat, a watch) | HSK 4 |
| 地址 | dìzhǐ | address | HSK 4 |
| 肚子 | dùzi | belly, tummy | HSK 4 |
| 打扰 | dǎrǎo | to disturb | HSK 4 |
| 打针 | dǎzhēn | to have an injection | HSK 4 |
| 挂 | guà | to hang | HSK 4 |
| 果汁 | guǒzhī | fruit juice | HSK 4 |
| 够 | gòu | enough | HSK 4 |
| 功夫 | gōngfu | kung fu | HSK 4 |
| 公里 | gōnglǐ | kilometre | HSK 4 |
| 敢 | gǎn | to dare | HSK 4 |
| 寒假 | hánjià | winter holiday | HSK 4 |
| 盒子 | hézi | box | HSK 4 |
| 护士 | hùshi | nurse | HSK 4 |
| 互相 | hùxiāng | each other | HSK 4 |
| 将来 | jiānglái | the future | HSK 4 |
| 减 | jiǎn | to subtract | HSK 4 |
| 既……又…… | jì…yòu… | both... and... | HSK 4 |
| 警察 | jǐngchá | police officer | HSK 4 |
| 紧张 | jǐnzhāng | nervous | HSK 4 |
| 联系 | liánxì | to contact | HSK 4 |
| 俩 | liǎ | two (people) | HSK 4 |
| 辣 | là | spicy | HSK 4 |
| 来得及 | láidejí | to have enough time | HSK 4 |
| 厉害 | lìhai | amazing; severe | HSK 4 |
| 另外 | lìngwài | besides, in addition | HSK 4 |
| 老虎 | lǎohǔ | tiger | HSK 4 |
| 礼貌 | lǐmào | polite; manners | HSK 4 |
| 暖和 | nuǎnhuo | warm | HSK 4 |
| 排队 | páiduì | to queue | HSK 4 |
| 排球 | páiqiú | volleyball | HSK 4 |
| 破 | pò | broken, torn | HSK 4 |
| 葡萄 | pútao | grape | HSK 4 |
| 乒乓球 | pīngpāngqiú | table tennis | HSK 4 |
| 桥 | qiáo | bridge | HSK 4 |
| 巧克力 | qiǎokèlì | chocolate | HSK 4 |
| 受不了 | shòubuliǎo | can't stand | HSK 4 |
| 售票员 | shòupiàoyuán | ticket seller, conductor | HSK 4 |
| 熟悉 | shúxī | familiar | HSK 4 |
| 暑假 | shǔjià | summer holiday | HSK 4 |
| 散步 | sànbù | to go for a walk | HSK 4 |
| 孙子 | sūnzi | grandson | HSK 4 |
| 脱 | tuō | to take off (clothes, shoes) | HSK 4 |
| 停 | tíng | to stop | HSK 4 |
| 汤 | tāng | soup | HSK 4 |
| 躺 | tǎng | to lie down | HSK 4 |
| 讨论 | tǎolùn | to discuss | HSK 4 |
| 讨厌 | tǎoyàn | to dislike; annoying | HSK 4 |
| 无论 | wúlùn | no matter | HSK 4 |
| 危险 | wēixiǎn | dangerous | HSK 4 |
| 响 | xiǎng | to ring, to make a sound | HSK 4 |
| 幸福 | xìngfú | happy (a deep, lasting happiness) | HSK 4 |
| 西红柿 | xīhóngshì | tomato | HSK 4 |
| 星星 | xīngxing | star | HSK 4 |
| 心情 | xīnqíng | mood | HSK 4 |
| 醒 | xǐng | to wake up | HSK 4 |
| 钥匙 | yàoshi | key | HSK 4 |
| 云 | yún | cloud | HSK 4 |
| 眼镜 | yǎnjìng | glasses | HSK 4 |
| 勇敢 | yǒnggǎn | brave | HSK 4 |
| 祝贺 | zhùhè | to congratulate | HSK 4 |
| 知识 | zhīshi | knowledge | HSK 4 |
| 准时 | zhǔnshí | on time | HSK 4 |
| 杂志 | zázhì | magazine | HSK 4 |
| 白 | bái | white | HSK 5 |
| 虫子 | chóngzi | insect, bug | HSK 5 |
| 大象 | dàxiàng | elephant | HSK 5 |
| 红 | hóng | red | HSK 5 |
| 猴子 | hóuzi | monkey | HSK 5 |
| 蝴蝶 | húdié | butterfly | HSK 5 |
| 哈 | hā | ha (laughter) | HSK 5 |
| 黑 | hēi | black | HSK 5 |
| 梨 | lí | pear | HSK 5 |
| 迷路 | mílù | to get lost | HSK 5 |
| 桃 | táo | peach | HSK 5 |
| 兔子 | tùzi | rabbit | HSK 5 |
| 玩具 | wánjù | toy | HSK 5 |
| 小姐 | xiǎojiě | Miss; young lady | HSK 5 |
| 信封 | xìnfēng | envelope | HSK 5 |
| 圆 | yuán | round | HSK 5 |
| 黄 | huáng | yellow | HSK 6 |
| 马虎 | mǎhu | careless | HSK 6 |
Not listed as separate words in HSK 3.0 (33): 北京、长城、唱歌、春季、打篮球、大海、第一、电灯、电子邮件、冬、服务员、公共汽车、刮风、极了、烤鸭、流汗、绿、玫瑰花、爬山、骑马、秋、上边、上海、刷牙、弹钢琴、踢足球、下雪、夏、熊猫、羊肉、雨伞、越来越、中国人