Articles
Articles
Read and listen to short Chinese texts: conversations between two people and short news items. You can switch between characters, pinyin and English, play the whole thing and then test yourself with a few multiple-choice questions. Choose a text below.
Type
Level
Category
Surprise
- 01 Nice to meet you Li Ming and Wang Li meet for the first time: names, where they are from and what they do — all in HSK 1 Chinese.
- 02 What would you like to drink? At a restaurant: Xiao Mei and Da Wei order tea, rice and a dish, and ask how much it costs — HSK 1 vocabulary only.
- 03 What time is it? Tom is late for class: a short chat about the time, today's date and what to do this afternoon — HSK 1 level.
- 04 This is my family Anna shows a photo of her family: who is who, how old they are and what they do — a simple HSK 1 dialogue.
- 05 Going shopping In a clothes shop: Wang Fang wants to buy clothes, asks the price and pays — HSK 1 words plus a few shop basics.
- 06 News: a cold weekend in Beijing A very short weather report in HSK 1 Chinese: cold days, rain on Sunday and what people are doing.
- 07 News: a new restaurant near the school A new restaurant has opened next to the school: cheap rice dishes, tea and happy students — an HSK 1 news item.
- 08 News: a cat in the hospital A small cat walked into a Beijing hospital and now lives there — a light HSK 1 news story with numbers, places and people.
- 09 News: students learn Chinese online More and more students learn Chinese on the computer: a short HSK 1 news item about studying, teachers and time.
- 10 News: new taxis in the city The city has new taxis: cheaper, cleaner and easy to call by phone — a simple HSK 1 transport news item.
- 11 How do I get to the train station? Li Ming needs to pick up his sister at the train station and Wang Fang tells him which bus to take, an HSK 2 dialogue.
- 12 My little brother is sick Xiao Lin's younger brother is ill and Zhang Li offers to visit him together, an HSK 2 dialogue about health.
- 13 Buying a new shirt Anna wants a red shirt but it is too expensive, so she tries a cheaper white one, an HSK 2 shopping dialogue.
- 14 Dad's birthday dinner Xiao Ming and his mother plan a birthday dinner and a surprise present for Dad, an HSK 2 family dialogue.
- 15 After the exam Xiao Hong has just finished a long exam and David invites her to go singing with everyone tonight, an HSK 2 dialogue about school life.
- 16 News: First snow of the year The first snow of the year makes children happy but slows down the buses, a short HSK 2 weather news item.
- 17 News: New bus to the airport A new red bus will run between the train station and the airport every fifteen minutes, an HSK 2 transport news item.
- 18 News: Sports day at the primary school Pupils run, play football and basketball on a sunny sports day while parents watch, an HSK 2 sport news item.
- 19 News: Watermelons are cheap this week A big watermelon harvest means prices are half what they were last year, an HSK 2 food news item.
- 20 News: New hotel next to the station A large new hotel with 300 rooms has opened a five-minute walk from the train station, an HSK 2 city news item.
- 21 Moving to a new apartment Wang Fang tells her friend about her new apartment, her kind neighbour and a housewarming dinner – an HSK 3 conversation.
- 22 At the doctor with a cold Zhang Wei has a fever and a headache, but he worries about an important meeting – an HSK 3 conversation at the doctor's.
- 23 Planning a weekend hike Xiao Lin persuades David to climb the famous mountain south of the city and they plan the trip – an HSK 3 conversation.
- 24 A birthday gift for Grandma A sister and brother discuss what to give their grandmother for her seventieth birthday and settle on a photo book – an HSK 3 conversation.
- 25 Late for the meeting Liu Yang arrives half an hour late because the subway broke down, and explains himself to his manager – an HSK 3 conversation at work.
- 26 News: The city's third subway line opens A new subway line with eighteen stations cuts the north–south journey to 35 minutes – an HSK 3 news report.
- 27 News: A baby panda gets a name A panda at the city zoo has a cub, and twenty thousand people help choose its name – an HSK 3 news report.
- 28 News: Sports day at No. 2 Middle School A school holds its yearly sports competition, a third-year girl breaks a record and the principal runs too – an HSK 3 news report.
- 29 News: The hottest week of the summer A heatwave empties the streets at noon, libraries open their air-conditioned halls and even the pandas get iced fruit – an HSK 3 news report.
- 30 News: A tiny street library A retired teacher builds a one-metre-tall library on her street and the whole neighbourhood starts reading – an HSK 3 news report.
- 31 What to do after graduation Zhang Wei is about to graduate and must choose between graduate school and a first job — an HSK 4 conversation about plans and reasons.
- 32 Planning a trip to Xi'an Li Na and Mark compare planes, trains and hotels while planning a National Day holiday trip to Xi'an — an HSK 4 conversation.
- 33 Too much overtime Chen Jing is exhausted from working late every day and wonders whether to change jobs; her friend gives advice — an HSK 4 conversation.
- 34 Choosing a new phone Xiaoyu's old phone keeps breaking down, so David helps her compare two models on camera, screen and price — an HSK 4 conversation.
- 35 Getting back in shape Lin Fang has lost six kilos and explains how she did it, then persuades Zhou Ming to start running with her — an HSK 4 conversation.
- 36 News: City library to stay open until ten The city library extends its opening hours after a reader survey, and the city adds a late bus — an HSK 4 news report.
- 37 News: Heavy rain expected this weekend Heavy rain and strong wind are forecast for the weekend, so the city advises taking the subway and postpones its sports day — an HSK 4 news report.
- 38 News: Students plant 500 trees by the river Three hundred students plant trees along a once-polluted river, and the city plans a cycle path — an HSK 4 news report.
- 39 News: New subway line cuts travel time in half Subway Line 6 opens after four years of work, linking the university district to the train station in forty minutes — an HSK 4 news report.
- 40 News: Tiny dumpling shop wins city contest A 72-year-old cook with a six-table restaurant beats 45 rivals in the city dumpling competition — an HSK 4 news report.
- 41 Overtime or a life? Two colleagues talk about constant overtime, health and how to balance work and life in this HSK 5 conversation.
- 42 Should we move to the suburbs? A couple weighs the pros and cons of leaving the crowded city centre for a new suburban district in this HSK 5 conversation about city development.
- 43 Sorting the rubbish A grandmother and her granddaughter argue, then agree, about the new waste-sorting rules in their neighbourhood in this HSK 5 conversation.
- 44 A weekend without phones A father and his teenage son negotiate a phone-free weekend after a heated exchange about screen time in this HSK 5 conversation about technology in daily life.
- 45 At the calligraphy exhibition A Chinese student takes her Canadian friend to a calligraphy exhibition and explains why the art still matters today in this HSK 5 conversation about culture.
- 46 News: Riverside park replaces old factory A disused textile factory by the river has been turned into a public park with a running track and cultural centre, reported in formal news style at HSK 5.
- 47 News: Software firm tests four-day week A local software company reports the results of a six-month four-day-week trial on productivity, health and staff turnover in this HSK 5 news item about work-life balance.
- 48 News: Village revives handmade paper craft Young people returning to a mountain village have brought a 600-year-old papermaking tradition back to life, reported in formal HSK 5 news style.
- 49 News: Smart bins cut neighbourhood waste A pilot with smart recycling bins that reward residents with points has cut mixed waste by forty percent in one district, reported at HSK 5 in formal news style.
- 50 News: Survey finds young adults sleep too little A university survey of 5,000 young adults links late-night phone use to poor sleep and suggests practical remedies, reported in formal HSK 5 news style.
- 51 Quitting a stable job to start a business Zhou Yan tells her old friend she is leaving a secure company job to open a design studio, and he challenges her plan – an HSK 6 conversation about career choices.
- 52 Staying in the big city or moving back home Two flatmates debate whether the opportunities of a megacity are worth the rent, the commute and the loneliness – an HSK 6 conversation about urban life.
- 53 A doctor explains a sleep study A patient who has been sleeping badly for months asks a sleep specialist what the research actually says about screens, caffeine and sleeping pills – an HSK 6 conversation about health.
- 54 Arguing about modern art at the museum In front of an installation made of discarded plastic, a sceptical engineer and his art-student cousin argue about what makes something art – an HSK 6 conversation about the arts.
- 55 Persuading a neighbour to sort the recycling A volunteer at the community recycling point deals with an impatient neighbour who thinks sorting waste is pointless – an HSK 6 conversation about the environment.
- 56 News: A city trials a four-day week for public employees A mid-sized city reports the results of a six-month four-day-week pilot in three government departments – an HSK 6 news item on work and productivity.
- 57 News: Study links neighbourhood greenery to lower blood pressure A ten-year study of 60,000 city residents finds that people living near parks have measurably lower blood pressure – an HSK 6 news item on health research.
- 58 News: Independent bookshops make a quiet comeback Against expectations, the number of independent bookshops in one province has risen for three years running by reinventing themselves as cultural spaces – an HSK 6 news item on the arts and consumer trends.
- 59 News: Second-hand market booms as young consumers tighten their belts A consumer report finds trade in used goods up by a third in a year, driven by young people who call it 'rational consumption' rather than thrift – an HSK 6 news item on the economy.
- 60 News: River otters return to a city waterway after forty years Camera traps confirm a family of otters living in a once heavily polluted urban river, the result of two decades of clean-up – an HSK 6 news item on the environment.
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