HSK 1 Reading comprehension
HSK 1 Reading comprehension checks character recognition and simple sentence meaning within the same limited beginner vocabulary. It has 20 items in four parts and is worth 100 points. Tasks move from matching words to pictures, through choosing the word that completes a sentence, to matching questions with answers and reading very short passages. You are not asked to write characters, but you must distinguish them accurately.
Build words from characters
A small character set is recycled into many words: 学 appears in 学生, 学校, 学习; 天 appears in 今天, 明天, 天气. Learn characters as parts of families, not as isolated shapes. Pay attention to small stroke differences: 大/太/天, 人/入, 日/目, 木/本. A single extra stroke changes the word and the answer.
Sentence order and function words
The basic order is subject + time + place + verb + object: 我明天在家看书. Negation comes before the verb or adjective: 我不吃肉, 今天不冷. 是 links two nouns, 有 shows possession or existence, 在 marks location. 的 connects a modifier to a noun; 了 marks a change or completed action.
Questions and answers
Match the answer to the question word: 为什么 asks for a reason, so look for 因为; 谁 asks for a person; 哪儿 asks for a place; 几/多少 ask for a number. 吗 makes a yes/no question, and the answer normally repeats the verb or uses 对/不.
Worked example
大卫今天没去学校，因为下雨了。Question: 大卫为什么没去学校？Options: 因为下雨了 / 他去学校了 / 今天天气很好.
Reasoning: 为什么 asks for a cause, and 因为 introduces it. 没去 is negated past action, and 了 at the end of the clause marks a change. The second option contradicts 没去; the third contradicts 下雨. The first option answers the question word directly.
Traps that cost marks
- Choosing a visually similar character, such as 大 instead of 天.
- Ignoring measure words: 一个学生, 一本书, 三口人, 三岁, 五块钱, 一件衣服.
- Using 二 where 两 is required before a measure word.
- Answering with a repeated word from the passage instead of the information the question asks for.