HSK Exam Guide HSK 3.0 ability descriptions: what each of the nine levels says a learner can do
The document linked from the official chinesetest.cn home page describes nine HSK levels. For each level it gives one line stating what a learner can do in Chinese. At Level 1 the line says a learner can use Chinese for simple communication in daily-life situations; at Level 9 it says precise, in-depth communication across work, professional, academic and other settings.
What the document says
The document opens with one sentence (Chinese original; this site's unofficial translation):
中文水平考试/HSK 是一项国家级标准化考试，重点考查中文作为第二语言的考生在生活、学习和工作中运用中文进行交际的能力。
This site's unofficial translation: The Chinese Proficiency Test / HSK is a state-level standardised test. It focuses on assessing the ability of candidates who use Chinese as a second language to communicate in Chinese in daily life, study and work.
The document then lists nine lines, one per level. The Chinese column is the document's text. The translation column is this site's unofficial translation.
| Level | Chinese original | This site's unofficial translation |
|---|---|---|
| HSK (Level 1) | HSK（一级）能用中文就生活场景进行简单交流。 | Can use Chinese for simple communication in daily-life situations. |
| HSK (Level 2) | HSK（二级）能用中文就生活、学习、工作场景进行基本交流。 | Can use Chinese for basic communication in daily-life, study and work situations. |
| HSK (Level 3) | HSK（三级）能用中文就生活、学习、工作场景进行有效交流。 | Can use Chinese for effective communication in daily-life, study and work situations. |
| HSK (Level 4) | HSK（四级）能用中文就生活、学习、工作场景进行完整、连贯交流。 | Can use Chinese for complete, coherent communication in daily-life, study and work situations. |
| HSK (Level 5) | HSK（五级）能用中文就工作、学业场景进行准确、恰当交流。 | Can use Chinese for accurate, appropriate communication in work and academic-study situations. |
| HSK (Level 6) | HSK（六级）能用中文就职场、学业、一般专业场景进行丰富、顺畅交流。 | Can use Chinese for rich, smooth communication in workplace, academic-study and general professional situations. |
| HSK (Level 7) | HSK（七级）能用中文就职场、一般专业场景、通用学术场景进行规范、流利交流。 | Can use Chinese for standard, fluent communication in workplace, general professional and general academic situations. |
| HSK (Level 8) | HSK（八级）能用中文就职场、一般专业场景、通用学术场景进行得体、深入交流。 | Can use Chinese for appropriate, in-depth communication in workplace, general professional and general academic situations. |
| HSK (Level 9) | HSK（九级）能用中文就职业、专业、学术等各种场景进行精准、深入交流。 | Can use Chinese for precise, in-depth communication across work, professional, academic and other settings. |
How the lines change from level to level
Every line keeps the same shape: 能用中文就 [settings] 场景进行 [adverb] 交流 — "can use Chinese for [adverb] communication in [settings] situations."
From Level 1 to Level 9 the settings named move from 生活 (daily life) to 生活、学习、工作 (daily life, study, work) at Levels 2–4, then to 工作、学业 (work, academic study) at Level 5, then to 职场、学业、一般专业场景 (workplace, academic study, general professional) at Level 6, then to 职场、一般专业场景、通用学术场景 (workplace, general professional, general academic) at Levels 7–8, and finally to 职业、专业、学术等 (work, professional, academic and others) at Level 9.
The adverbs placed before 交流 (communication) rise from 简单 (simple) at Level 1 through 基本 (basic), 有效 (effective), 完整、连贯 (complete, coherent), 准确、恰当 (accurate, appropriate), 丰富、顺畅 (rich, smooth), 规范、流利 (standard, fluent) and 得体 (appropriate) to 精准、深入 (precise, in-depth) at Level 9.
Sources
- HSK3.0 考试能力描述 — linked from the official chinesetest.cn home page Checked 11 October 2026 This page is an unofficial summary; it is not published by Chinese Testing International, the Center for Language Education and Cooperation or the Ministry of Education, and the official page prevails if they differ.