HSK 4 Reading Practice
You know around 1,200 words. Textbooks are getting boring, but real Chinese feels impossible. This is where graded reading changes everything.
Every story below has been rewritten using HSK 4 vocabulary, so you can read real Chinese literature right now. Lu Xun, Zhu Ziqing, Hu Shi, and more. Not textbook dialogues about train stations. Real stories that Chinese people actually grew up with.
When you're ready, switch to the original version of the same story and see how far you've come.
差不多先生傳
Mr. Almost
A satirical tale about 'Mr. Almost', a man whose indifference to precision leads to absurd—and fatal—consequences.
手
The Hands
A rural girl with discolored hands faces discrimination and isolation.
三个成语
Three Chengyu
The stories behind three well-known chengyu: the frog at the bottom of a well, the man who drew feet on a snake, and the old horses that found the way home.
再别康桥·偶然·沙扬娜拉
Xu Zhimo: Three Poems
Three of Xu Zhimo's best-loved poems: his quiet farewell to Cambridge, a chance meeting between two strangers, and a Japanese girl's goodbye.
荷塘月色
Moonlight Over the Lotus Pond
A poetic and introspective essay by Zhu Ziqing, capturing the tranquility of a moonlit night as he strolls along a lotus pond.
兔和猫
Rabbits and Cats
A tale of a family's pet rabbits that reveals life's unseen cruelty.
头发的故事
The Story of Hair
A man reflects on how cutting his hair brought ridicule and rejection.
背影
Retreating Figure
A deeply personal and touching essay that reflects on the author's complex emotions toward his father.
春
Spring
Zhu Ziqing's joyful sketch of spring arriving: hills waking, trees in blossom, soft rain, and everyone heading outdoors to start the year.
鬼
Ghosts
A skeptical son clashes with his devout mother over her belief in spirits.
偷莲
Stealing Lotus
Villagers outwit a cocky young landowner during a moonlit lotus heist.
谈酒
On Drinking Alcohol
A reflection on the cultural, personal, and sensory experience of drinking alcohol.
牛车上
On the Ox Cart
On an ox-cart ride, a woman’s haunting tale of lost love, war, and survival unfolds,
后花园
The Back Garden
A quiet, solitary miller lives out a life of unspoken love, hardship, and resignation.
日本的娼妇与文士
Japanese Prostitutes and Writers
A scathing critique of Japanese intellectuals during the Sino-Japanese War.
电车上
On the Trolleybus
A frustrated man's commute turns into a chaotic clash of faiths.
破庙
The Abandoned Temple
A man takes shelter from a violent storm in a deserted temple and experiences a terrifying vision.
血泪
Blood and Tears
A man returns to his homeland and struggles to reconnect with it.
夜哨线
Night Watch Line
A reluctant soldier wrestles with his conscience and takes a desperate stand for his humanity.
天足
Natural Feet
A sharp and personal rejection of footbinding, using satire and social observation to reflect on cultural barbarism.
希望的埋葬
The Burial of Hope
A sorrowful meditation on the death of hope and the emotional struggle of letting go.
丰收
Harvest
A struggling Chinese farmer clings to the hope of a bountiful harvest, only to find himself crushed by a brutal system.
鬼的生长
The Growth of Ghosts
A curious exploration of ghosts, blending folklore, diary records, and skeptical humanism.
天国的消息
News from Heaven
A moment of tranquil beauty and children's laughter evokes a vision of heaven and spiritual clarity.
What can you read at HSK 4?
With around 1,200 words, you can read graded versions of real Chinese literature. Short stories, essays and poems by Lu Xun, Zhu Ziqing and Hu Shi, rewritten to stay inside HSK 4 vocabulary. Not textbook dialogues about booking train tickets. Tap any word for pinyin and a definition, then try the original when you're ready.
Is HSK 4 enough to read real Chinese?
For graded reading, yes. For unadapted books and news, not quite. HSK 4 covers around 1,200 words, roughly a quarter of what you need for native material. That's why graded versions matter. You get the real story, the real author, the real style, held to vocabulary you already know instead of a wall of unknown characters.
How should you practise reading at HSK 4?
Read things you can almost understand, not things you fully understand. Pick a graded story a little above your comfort level, read for meaning rather than looking up every word, and only tap the ones that block you. Do it daily, even ten minutes. Reading widely at the right level beats grinding flashcards every time.