Learning verbs is one of the fastest ways to start speaking Chinese. Verbs help you express actions like eating, going, seeing, and liking. At the HSK 1 level, you don’t need complicated grammar. With just a few basic verbs, you can already form useful sentences for daily life.
In this guide, you will learn 30 essential Chinese verbs with clear example sentences in Chinese, pinyin, and English.
Why Verbs Are Important in HSK 1
In Chinese, verbs are simple compared to many other languages. They do not change form based on tense or subject. This means once you learn a verb, you can use it immediately in different situations. For example, the verb 吃 (chī) means “to eat” and stays the same whether you talk about yesterday, today, or tomorrow.
1. 吃 (chī) – to eat
我吃米饭。
Wǒ chī mǐfàn.
I eat rice.
你吃了吗？
Nǐ chī le ma?
Have you eaten?
2. 喝 (hē) – to drink
我喝水。
Wǒ hē shuǐ.
I drink water.
他喝茶。
Tā hē chá.
He drinks tea.
3. 去 (qù) – to go
我去学校。
Wǒ qù xuéxiào.
I go to school.
你去哪儿？
Nǐ qù nǎr?
Where are you going?
4. 来 (lái) – to come
他来中国。
Tā lái Zhōngguó.
He comes to China.
你什么时候来？
Nǐ shénme shíhòu lái?
When will you come?
5. 看 (kàn) – to see / to watch
我看电视。
Wǒ kàn diànshì.
I watch TV.
他看书。
Tā kàn shū.
He reads a book.
6. 听 (tīng) – to listen
我听音乐。
Wǒ tīng yīnyuè.
I listen to music.
请听我说。
Qǐng tīng wǒ shuō.
Please listen to me.
7. 说 (shuō) – to speak / to say
他说汉语。
Tā shuō Hànyǔ.
He speaks Chinese.
你说什么？
Nǐ shuō shénme?
What are you saying?
8. 学 (xué) – to learn
我学中文。
Wǒ xué Zhōngwén.
I learn Chinese.
他学英语。
Tā xué Yīngyǔ.
He learns English.
9. 做 (zuò) – to do / to make
我做饭。
Wǒ zuò fàn.
I cook.
你在做什么？
Nǐ zài zuò shénme?
What are you doing?
10. 买 (mǎi) – to buy
我买东西。
Wǒ mǎi dōngxi.
I buy things.
他买咖啡。
Tā mǎi kāfēi.
He buys coffee.
11. 开 (kāi) – to open / to drive
我开门。
Wǒ kāi mén.
I open the door.
他开车。
Tā kāi chē.
He drives a car.
12. 坐 (zuò) – to sit
请坐。
Qǐng zuò.
Please sit.
我坐在这里。
Wǒ zuò zài zhèlǐ.
I sit here.
13. 走 (zǒu) – to walk / to leave
我们走吧。
Wǒmen zǒu ba.
Let’s go.
他走了。
Tā zǒu le.
He left.
14. 回 (huí) – to return
我回家。
Wǒ huí jiā.
I return home.
他几点回？
Tā jǐ diǎn huí?
What time does he return?
15. 睡 (shuì) – to sleep
我睡觉。
Wǒ shuì jiào.
I sleep.
他睡得很好。
Tā shuì de hěn hǎo.
He sleeps well.
16. 起 (qǐ) – to get up
我早上七点起。
Wǒ zǎoshang qī diǎn qǐ.
I get up at 7 in the morning.
你几点起床？
Nǐ jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng?
What time do you get up?
17. 喜欢 (xǐhuān) – to like
我喜欢咖啡。
Wǒ xǐhuān kāfēi.
I like coffee.
你喜欢中国吗？
Nǐ xǐhuān Zhōngguó ma?
Do you like China?
18. 爱 (ài) – to love
我爱你。
Wǒ ài nǐ.
I love you.
他爱家人。
Tā ài jiārén.
He loves his family.
19. 想 (xiǎng) – to want / to think
我想吃饭。
Wǒ xiǎng chī fàn.
I want to eat.
我想你。
Wǒ xiǎng nǐ.
I miss you.
20. 要 (yào) – to want / need
我要水。
Wǒ yào shuǐ.
I want water.
你要什么？
Nǐ yào shénme?
What do you want?
21. 给 (gěi) – to give
我给你钱。
Wǒ gěi nǐ qián.
I give you money.
他给我书。
Tā gěi wǒ shū.
He gives me a book.
22. 找 (zhǎo) – to look for
我找老师。
Wǒ zhǎo lǎoshī.
I look for the teacher.
你找什么？
Nǐ zhǎo shénme?
What are you looking for?
23. 认识 (rènshi) – to know (someone)
我认识他。
Wǒ rènshi tā.
I know him.
你认识她吗？
Nǐ rènshi tā ma?
Do you know her?
24. 叫 (jiào) – to be called / to call
我叫李明。
Wǒ jiào Lǐ Míng.
My name is Li Ming.
他叫我。
Tā jiào wǒ.
He calls me.
25. 写 (xiě) – to write
我写字。
Wǒ xiě zì.
I write characters.
他写邮件。
Tā xiě yóujiàn.
He writes emails.
26. 看见 (kànjiàn) – to see (notice)
我看见他了。
Wǒ kànjiàn tā le.
I saw him.
你看见了吗？
Nǐ kànjiàn le ma?
Did you see it?
27. 用 (yòng) – to use
我用手机。
Wǒ yòng shǒujī.
I use a phone.
你用这个。
Nǐ yòng zhège.
You use this.
28. 打 (dǎ) – to hit / to call
我打电话。
Wǒ dǎ diànhuà.
I make a phone call.
他打球。
Tā dǎ qiú.
He plays ball.
29. 工作 (gōngzuò) – to work
我在公司工作。
Wǒ zài gōngsī gōngzuò.
I work at a company.
他工作很忙。
Tā gōngzuò hěn máng.
He is busy with work.
30. 学习 (xuéxí) – to study
我学习汉语。
Wǒ xuéxí Hànyǔ.
I study Chinese.
她每天学习。
Tā měitiān xuéxí.
She studies every day.
How to Practice These Verbs Daily
To remember these verbs, try to use them in real-life situations. When you go to a Restaurant (餐厅, cān tīng), think of verbs like 吃 (chī) and 喝 (hē). At School (学校, xué xiào), use 学 (xué) and 写 (xiě). When traveling to an Airport (机场, jī chǎng), you can use 去 (qù) and 来 (lái). The more you connect verbs to real situations, the faster you will remember them.
Common Sentence Pattern with Verbs
A basic Chinese sentence structure is very simple: Subject + Verb + Object
Example
我吃苹果。
Wǒ chī píngguǒ.
I eat an apple.
Once you know verbs, you can easily swap the object and create many sentences.
New Words from This Blog Post
米饭 (mǐfàn) – 米饭 (mǐfàn) rice
电视 (diànshì) – 电视 (diànshì) television
音乐 (yīnyuè) – 音乐 (yīnyuè) music
老师 (lǎoshī) – 老师 (lǎoshī) teacher
咖啡 (kāfēi) – 咖啡 (kāfēi) coffee
东西 (dōngxi) – 东西 (dōngxi) things
门 (mén) – 门 (mén) door
家 (jiā) – 家 (jiā) home
钱 (qián) – 钱 (qián) money
书 (shū) – 书 (shū) book
手机 (shǒujī) – 手机 (shǒujī) mobile phone
电话 (diànhuà) – 电话 (diànhuà) phone call
公司 (gōngsī) – 公司 (gōngsī) company
苹果 (píngguǒ) – 苹果 (píngguǒ) apple
中国 (Zhōngguó) – 中国 (Zhōngguó) China
