Top 200 Chinese Words

最常用两百个词

The 200 most common Chinese words are the skeleton of everyday Mandarin — enough to follow slow conversation and read simple dialogues. Ranked by frequency in written Chinese, each row shows the word, its pinyin with tone marks, its part of speech and a plain-English definition: everything a Chinese learner needs to start using the word, not just recognising it.

200 wordsCorpus frequency orderFree PDF · no sign-up

Free downloads

Download the list, or practise in the generator

The full list as a printable vector PDF. For handwriting practice, the generator builds a sheet from any text you give it. No email, no account.

Download Free PDF — Top 200 Chinese Words Make a practice sheet in the generator

List PDF — every entry with its rank, pinyin and meaning.
Practice — a 200-entry list would be a 67-page handwriting workbook, so instead the generator opens in Words mode and turns whatever text you paste into Tianzige practice grids with pinyin and stroke order.

The full list

200 most common Chinese words, in frequency order

Every word links to its own page with stroke order, pinyin and example words.

#	Word	Pinyin	POS	Meaning
1	我们	wǒmen	pron	we, us
2	他们	tāmen	pron	they, them
3	自己	zìjǐ	pron	self
4	什么	shénme	pron	what
5	这个	zhège	pron	this
6	可以	kěyǐ	v	may, can
7	问题	wèntí	n	question, problem, issue
8	没有	méiyǒu	v	have not, there be not
9	这样	zhèyàng	pron	this (kind of, sort of); so
10	知道	zhīdào	v	know
11	现在	xiànzài	time	now
12	工作	gōngzuò	v	work, do a job
13	因为	yīn wèi	conj	because
14	已经	yǐjīng	adv	already
15	时候	shíhou	n	when, time when…
16	这些	zhèxiē	pron	these
17	发展	fāzhǎn	v	develop
18	社会	shèhuì	n	society
19	一些	yìxiē	num	some
20	如果	rúguǒ	conj	if
21	世界	shìjiè	n	world
22	生活	shēnghuó	v	live
23	怎么	zěnme	pron	how
24	国家	guójiā	n	country
25	开始	kāishǐ	v	begin, start
26	时间	shíjiān	n	time
27	起来	qǐlái	v	get up, rise; [following a verb to indicate the beginning of a situation] start to; [following a verb to indicate completedeness or effectiveness]
28	今天	jīntiān	time	today
29	可能	kěnéng	v	might (happen)
30	孩子	háizi	n	child, children
31	地方	dìfang	n	place, space, room; locality (in relation to central administration)
32	但是	dànshì	conj	but
33	所以	suǒyǐ	conj	so, therefore
34	认为	rènwéi	v	think, believe
35	经济	jīngjì	n	economy
36	公司	gōngsī	n	(business) company
37	文化	wénhuà	n	culture
38	关系	guānxì	n	relation, relationship; connections, ties
39	觉得	juéde	v	think, feel
40	出来	chūlái	v	come out
41	进行	jìnxíng	v	go on, last; be under way; carry on, carry out, perform
42	重要	zhòng yào	adj	important, vital
43	这么	zhème	pron	so, such, like this
44	情况	qíngkuàng	n	situation, condition, circumstance
45	这里	zhèlǐ	pron	here
46	你们	nǐmen	pron	[plural] you
47	而且	érqiě	conj	(not only …) but also
48	企业	qǐyè	n	business establishment, enterprise
49	方面	fāngmiàn	n	aspect, respect, side
50	那么	nàme	pron	so, that; in that way
51	应该	yīnggāi	v	ought to, should
52	发现	fāxiàn	v	find
53	大家	dàjiā	pron	all, everyone
54	为了	wèile	prep	for the sake of; in order to
55	东西	dōngxi	n	stuff, thing
56	看到	kàndào	v	see
57	历史	lìshǐ	n	history
58	非常	fēicháng	adv	very, unusually
59	那个	nèige	pron	that one
60	成为	chéngwéi	v	become
61	最后	zuìhòu	adj	final, last
62	人民	rénmín	n	(the) people
63	之后	zhīhòu	loc	after, afterwards
64	研究	yán jiū	v	do research, study
65	政府	zhèngfǔ	n	government
66	先生	xiānsheng	n	Mr; mister, sir
67	人们	rénmen	n	people
68	一直	yìzhí	adv	straight (in a straight line); always, all along
69	特别	tèbié	adv	especially, particularly
70	记者	jìzhě	n	reporter, journalist
71	需要	xūyào	v	need
72	以后	yǐhòu	loc	after; afterwards
73	发生	fāshēng	v	happen, take place
74	出现	chūxiàn	v	appear
75	一起	yìqǐ	adv	together
76	国际	guójì	n	international
77	一定	yídìng	adv	certainly
78	许多	xǔduō	num	many, plenty of
79	希望	xīwàng	v	hope, wish for
80	大学	dàxué	n	university
81	然后	ránhòu	adv	afterwards, then
82	必须	bìxū	v	must, have to
83	事情	shìqíng	n	matter, thing
84	为什么	wèishénme	pron	why
85	教育	jiàoyù	v	educate
86	当时	dāngshí	time	then, at that time
87	之间	zhījiān	loc	between
88	当然	dāngrán	adv	of course, naturally, only natural
89	学校	xuéxiào	n	school
90	告诉	gàosù	v	tell
91	所有	suǒyǒu	pron	all
92	活动	huódòng	v	move about for exercise
93	学生	xuésheng	n	student
94	那些	nàxiē	pron	those
95	不同	bùtóng	adj	different
96	通过	tōngguò	prep	by means of, through, via
97	虽然	suīrán	conj	although
98	朋友	péngyǒu	n	friend
99	市场	shìchǎng	n	market
100	得到	dedào	v	get
101	政治	zhèngzhì	n	politics
102	过去	guòqù	time	(in the) past, before
103	地区	dìqū	n	area, region, district
104	思想	sīxiǎng	n	thought, idea
105	很多	hěnduō	num	very many, a large number or amount of
106	精神	jīngshén	n	spirit, mind, mental state; essence; vigour, vitality
107	参加	cānjiā	v	take part in, participate; join
108	就是	jiùshì	v	[emphasising that something is precisely or exactly what is stated] be exactly
109	比较	bǐjiào	adv	comparatively, relatively
110	其他	qítā	pron	other
111	完全	wánquán	adj	complete, whole
112	由于	yóuyú	prep	due to
113	能够	nénggòu	v	be able to, be capable of
114	后来	hòulái	time	afterwards
115	影响	yǐngxiǎng	v	influence
116	领导	lǐngdǎo	n	leader, leadership
117	任何	rènhé	pron	any
118	准备	zhǔnbèi	v	prepare, get ready
119	电话	diànhuà	n	telephone, telephone call
120	其实	qíshí	adv	actually
121	其中	qízhōng	pron	among them, in it
122	城市	chéngshì	n	city
123	办法	bànfǎ	n	method, means
124	管理	guǎnlǐ	v	manage
125	下来	xiàlái	v	come down, descend
126	解决	jiějué	v	solve (a problem), settle (a dispute)
127	技术	jìshù	n	technology
128	学习	xuéxí	v	learn, study
129	喜欢	xǐ huan	v	like, enjoy
130	作为	zuòwéi	v	as, take as, regard as
131	对于	duìyú	prep	regarding, as to, for, about
132	决定	juédìng	v	decide
133	一切	yíqiè	pron	everything, all
134	或者	huòzhě	conj	or
135	同时	tóngshí	conj	at the same time, simultaneously; besides, moreover
136	提出	tíchū	v	raise (an issue), propose, suggest
137	了解	liǎojiě	v	get to know, understand
138	别人	biérén	pron	other people
139	如何	rúhé	pron	how
140	个人	gèrén	n	individual
141	方式	fāngshì	n	way, pattern or style of doing things
142	以及	yǐjí	conj	and, as well as, along with
143	有些	yǒuxiē	pron	some
144	环境	huánjìng	n	environment
145	老师	lǎoshī	n	teacher
146	因此	yīncǐ	conj	as such, so, therefore, as a result
147	结果	jiéguǒ	n	result, outcome
148	有人	yǒurén	pron	someone
149	一般	yìbān	adv	generally, as a rule
150	包括	bāokuò	v	include, comprise
151	继续	jìxù	v	continue
152	回来	huílái	v	return
153	表示	biǎoshì	v	express
154	会议	huìyì	n	meeting
155	成功	chénggōng	adj	successful
156	一样	yíyàng	aux	[usually occurring in 像…一样] like
157	能力	nénglì	n	ability, capability
158	可是	kěshì	conj	but
159	机会	jīhuì	n	opportunity
160	同志	tóngzhì	n	comrade; [more recent usage] someone who is homosexual
161	有的	yǒude	pron	some
162	民族	mínzú	n	nationality
163	多少	duōshǎo	pron	how many, how much; an unspecified number or amount
164	整个	zhěnggè	adj	whole, entire, all
165	过程	guòchéng	n	process, course of actions
166	改革	gǎigé	v	reform
167	家庭	jiātíng	n	family
168	条件	tiáojiàn	n	condition
169	认识	rèn shi	v	know, understand; recognise
170	目前	mùqián	time	currently, at the present time
171	人员	rényuán	n	staff, personnel
172	要求	yāoqiú	v	ask for, request, demand
173	进入	jìnrù	v	enter, get into
174	作用	zuòyòng	n	action, effect; role, function
175	甚至	shènzhì	adv	even
176	人类	rénlèi	n	human being, mankind, man
177	表现	biǎoxiàn	v	manifest, show; behave
178	原因	yuányīn	n	cause, reason
179	建设	jiànshè	v	build, construct
180	感到	gǎndào	v	feel
181	感觉	gǎnjué	n	feeling
182	不要	bù yào	adv	[negative imperative] don’t
183	十分	shífēn	adv	very, fully
184	部队	bùduì	n	army, troops
185	有关	yǒuguān	v	have something to do with
186	父亲	fùqīn	n	father
187	不断	búduàn	adv	unceasingly, always
188	儿子	érzi	n	son
189	接受	jiēshòu	v	accept
190	注意	zhùyì	v	pay attention to; take notice of, note
191	年代	niándài	n	a decade of a century; years, time
192	世纪	shìjì	n	century
193	不过	búguò	conj	only; but
194	主要	zhǔyào	adj	main, major
195	存在	cúnzài	v	exist
196	建立	jiànlì	v	establish, set up
197	努力	nǔlì	v	strive to, try one’s best to; make efforts to
198	相信	xiāngxìn	v	believe, trust, be convinced
199	组织	zǔzhī	n	organisation
200	介绍	jièshào	v	introduce

How to use it

Studying from a frequency list

1. Work front to back

The order is the whole point. Twenty new words from the top of this list are worth more than a hundred from the bottom, because you will meet them far more often.

2. Write them, don't just read them

Handwriting is what makes a character stick. Paste whatever you are working on into the generator — it draws each character stroke by stroke and leaves blank Tianzige cells to write in.

3. Open the entry pages

Every word links to its own page with the stroke order animated, all its readings, and common words built from it — the fastest way to turn a ranked row into something you remember.

4. Read past the list

Use the generator to turn any Chinese text into a worksheet, then check the characters you meet against this ranking.

Frequently asked

Questions about this list

How many Chinese words do I need to know?

1,000 words gets you through everyday conversation and simple reading; 2,000–3,000 is where newspapers and novels open up. Because this list is ranked by corpus frequency, the top of it is the highest-value study time you can spend.

Is the top 200 chinese words list free to download?

Yes — the full list is free to download as a printable PDF, with no account. There is no practice sheet for a list this long (it would run to about 67 pages), so the practice button opens the worksheet generator in Words mode instead; paste any text there and it builds Tianzige grids with pinyin and stroke order.

What order is the list in?

Strict frequency order, taken from a corpus-derived frequency dictionary of Mandarin Chinese. Rank 1 is the most frequent entry in the corpus, not the easiest or the first one a textbook introduces.

How is this word list different from the character lists?

This list only carries words of two or more characters, so it answers a different question from the character lists. Single-character words such as 的, 是 and 一 do sit at the very top of the raw frequency ranking — in Chinese a single character is often a word in its own right — but they are already covered by the character lists and by each character's own page, so repeating them here would just push the vocabulary you came for off the page.

More lists

Other frequency lists

Top 50 Chinese Words50 words · free PDF Top 100 Chinese Words100 words · free PDF Top 500 Chinese Words500 words · free PDF Top 50 Chinese Characters50 characters · free PDF Top 100 Chinese Characters100 characters · free PDF Top 200 Chinese Characters200 characters · free PDF Top 500 Chinese Characters500 characters · free PDF

Turn any Chinese text into a worksheet

Paste a lesson, a poem or a news paragraph and print it as Tianzige practice grids with tone-marked pinyin and stroke-order breakdowns — free vector PDF.

Open the worksheet generator All frequency lists