HSK 1 Traditional Chinese Stories: 28 with Zhuyin & Pinyin

Every free story on this site at an estimated HSK 1 level, shown in Traditional characters (繁體字) and sorted easiest first. Switch the pronunciation guide between pinyin and zhuyin, tap any word for its meaning, and flip to Simplified any time. No sign-up.

  • 28free stories
  • 29%of characters look different from Simplified
  • 248characters through HSK 1
  • 68characters in a typical story

简 Prefer Simplified? Same stories in SimplifiedTest yourself: HSK 1 reading comprehension

What HSK 1 reading looks like in Traditional characters

HSK 1 stories in Traditional characters are short, concrete and mostly dialogue: 你叫什麼名字？ 我是學生。 小貓很可愛。 The grammar is exactly what HSK 1 and TOCFL Band A courses teach first (是 and 有, 嗎 questions, 不 and 沒, 很 + adjective), and the words are the everyday ones: 謝謝, 朋友, 喜歡, 今天. What changes from Simplified is how many characters look new: 們, 嗎, 這, 學, 貓, 愛.

HSK 1 in Traditional, in numbers:
  • 28 free stories at this level, 26–198 characters each (typically 68).
  • 29% of the characters you read in them are written differently in Traditional than in Simplified; the rest are identical.
  • 300 words / 248 characters in the 2026 HSK 3.0 lists through HSK 1, and 81% of the characters in these stories come from them.
  • Pinyin or zhuyin on tap, Taiwan quotation marks (「」), and a Simplified switch if you need to compare.

Which TOCFL level is HSK 1?

TOCFL bands and the levels on this site (approximate)
TOCFLTOCFL levels≈ HSKRead here
Band ALevel 1 入門級 (A1), Level 2 基礎級 (A2)1–2Beginner path, HSK 1 (this page), HSK 2
Band BLevel 3 進階級 (B1), Level 4 高階級 (B2)3–4HSK 3, HSK 4
Band CLevel 5 流利級 (C1), Level 6 精通級 (C2)5+HSK 5–6 (use the 繁 switch)

The match is approximate: TOCFL and HSK use different word lists and test formats, and our story levels are estimates on the HSK 3.0 scale. See the TOCFL guide for the exam itself.

New to this level, or not sure you're at it? Try the beginner path (15 hand-picked stories in order), or take the 2-minute character test to see where you are.

Read 3 HSK 1 stories right now

Pronunciation off first, then turn it on for any sentence that stops you. Choose pinyin or zhuyin; tap any word for its meaning, and check yourself with Translation and the quiz under each story. Your settings carry over to every story.

The Kitten and the Puppy: story illustration

1The Kitten and the Puppy

HSK 1 · 54 characters · ~1 min · with a 3-question quiz

The kitten likes to sleep, and the puppy likes to play. Can two such different animals be friends?

Tap any word for its meaning

這zhè是shì小貓xiǎo māo。This is the kitten.這zhè是shì小狗xiǎo gǒu。This is the puppy.

小貓xiǎo māo很hěn小xiǎo，很hěn漂亮piào liang。The kitten is very small and very pretty.小狗xiǎo gǒu也yě不bù大dà，很hěn可愛kě ài。The puppy is also not big and very cute.

小貓xiǎo māo喜歡xǐ huan睡覺shuì jiào。The kitten likes to sleep.小狗xiǎo gǒu喜歡xǐ huan玩wán。The puppy likes to play.

小貓xiǎo māo看kàn小狗xiǎo gǒu，小狗xiǎo gǒu也yě看kàn小貓xiǎo māo。The kitten looks at the puppy, and the puppy also looks at the kitten.他們tā men想xiǎng：「我們wǒ men是shì朋友péng you嗎ma？」They think: "Are we friends?"

Check your understanding

  1. What does the kitten (小猫) like to do?

  2. What is the puppy (小狗) like?

  3. What do the kitten and the puppy wonder at the end?

Open “The Kitten and the Puppy” on its own page →

Lil Jon Eats Breakfast: story illustration

2Lil Jon Eats Breakfast

HSK 1 · 69 characters · ~1 min · with a 3-question quiz

Mom has made pancakes and just wants to know if Lil Jon would like some. First, he has to hear her.

Tap any word for its meaning

媽媽mā ma做zuò了le煎餅jiān bǐng。Mom made pancakes.她tā問wèn小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn：你nǐ想xiǎng吃chī煎餅jiān bǐng嗎ma？She asked Lil Jon, "Would you like some pancakes?"

小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn：「什麼shén me！」Lil Jon: "What?!"

媽媽mā ma耐心地nài xīn de說shuō：「小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn，你nǐ想xiǎng吃chī煎餅jiān bǐng嗎ma？」Mom patiently repeated, "Lil Jon, would you like some pancakes?"

小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn笑著xiào zhe說shuō：「好啊hǎo a！」Lil Jon smiled and said, "Yeah!"

媽媽mā ma倒了dào le糖漿táng jiāng。Mom poured syrup.她tā問wèn：「糖漿táng jiāng夠gòu了le嗎ma？」She asked, "Is that enough syrup?"

小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn高興地gāo xìng de點頭diǎn tóu，說shuō：「好的hǎo de！」Lil Jon nodded enthusiastically and said, "Okay!"

Check your understanding

  1. 媽媽mā ma做了zuò le什麼shén me早飯zǎo fàn？

  2. 媽媽mā ma第一次dì yī cì問wèn小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn的de時候shí hou，他說tā shuō了le什麼shén me？

  3. 媽媽mā ma問wèn「糖漿táng jiāng夠gòu了le嗎ma？」的de時候shí hou，小約翰xiǎo yuē hàn做了zuò le什麼shén me？

Open “Lil Jon Eats Breakfast” on its own page →

Living to One Hundred: story illustration

3Living to One Hundred

HSK 1 · 68 characters · ~1 min · with a 3-question quiz

The doctor has a question of his own.

Tap any word for its meaning

王Wáng先生xiān sheng問wèn醫生yī shēng：「我wǒ怎麼樣zěn me yàng才能cái néng活huó到dào一yī百bǎi歲suì？」Mr. Wang asked the doctor, "How can I live to one hundred?"

醫生yī shēng問wèn：「你nǐ抽煙chōu yān喝酒hē jiǔ嗎ma？」「不bù抽煙chōu yān，也yě不bù喝酒hē jiǔ。」The doctor asked, "Do you smoke or drink?" "Neither."

「你nǐ吃chī肉ròu嗎ma？」「很少hěn shǎo吃chī。」"Do you eat meat?" "Very little."

「你nǐ晚上wǎn shang出去chū qù玩wán嗎ma？」「從來不cóng lái bù去qù。」"Do you go out at night?" "Never."醫生yī shēng想xiǎng了le想xiǎng，說shuō：The doctor thought for a moment and said,

「那nà你nǐ為什麼wèi shén me想xiǎng活huó那麼nà me久jiǔ呢ne？」"Then why do you want to live that long?"

Check your understanding

  1. 王wáng先生xiān sheng想xiǎng活huó到dào多少duō shǎo歲suì？

  2. 王wáng先生xiān sheng抽煙chōu yān喝酒hē jiǔ嗎ma？

  3. 醫生yī shēng最後zuì hòu問wèn了le什麼shén me？

Open “Living to One Hundred” on its own page →

How to practice reading at HSK 1 in Traditional

  1. Read each story twice: once with pinyin or zhuyin on, once with it off. The second read is where the Traditional forms start to stick.
  2. If you are learning for Taiwan, switch the guide to zhuyin (ㄅㄆㄇ). It is what Taiwanese children's books print, and it keeps your eyes on Chinese script.
  3. Read out loud. Sounding a sentence out is the quickest check that you really know it.
  4. Tap only the words that block the meaning of a sentence. Guessing the rest from context is part of the practice.

Grammar you will practice here

Patterns from our Chinese grammar guide that have a story on this page built around them:

All 28 HSK 1 stories in Traditional Chinese

Grouped by theme and sorted from easiest to hardest within each group (by length and word difficulty). Parts of a series stay together and in order. Reading times are rough estimates at a comfortable HSK 1 pace. Stories open in Traditional characters.

John and Xiaoting 12 stories

Kitten and Puppy Adventures 5 stories

Daily Life & Work 2 stories

Grammar in Context 5 stories

Chinese Jokes 1 story

AP Chinese Themes 3 stories

Key HSK 1 words in these stories

The HSK 1 words (HSK 3.0 list) that turn up most often across these stories, in Traditional characters with pinyin and zhuyin. Learn these first and you will meet each of them again and again. Browse the full HSK 1 word list for everything else.

  • 我wǒㄨㄛˇIin 22 of 28 stories
  • 你nǐㄋㄧˇyouin 21 of 28 stories
  • 了le˙ㄌㄜ(particle indicating completed action or change in 16 of 28 stories
  • 說简 说shuōㄕㄨㄛto speakin 15 of 28 stories
  • 很hěnㄏㄣˇveryin 15 of 28 stories
  • 嗎简 吗ma˙ㄇㄚ(question particle)in 15 of 28 stories
  • 是shìㄕˋto bein 13 of 28 stories
  • 好hǎoㄏㄠˇgoodin 13 of 28 stories
  • 也yěㄧㄝˇalsoin 12 of 28 stories
  • 媽媽简 妈妈mā maㄇㄚ ˙ㄇㄚmomin 10 of 28 stories
  • 想xiǎngㄒㄧㄤˇto thinkin 10 of 28 stories
  • 問简 问wènㄨㄣˋto askin 9 of 28 stories
  • 的de˙ㄉㄜpossessive particlein 9 of 28 stories
  • 今天jīn tiānㄐㄧㄣ ㄊㄧㄢtodayin 9 of 28 stories
  • 我們简 我们wǒ menㄨㄛˇ ˙ㄇㄣwein 9 of 28 stories
  • 去qùㄑㄩˋto goin 8 of 28 stories
  • 他們简 他们tā menㄊㄚ ˙ㄇㄣtheyin 8 of 28 stories
  • 什麼简 什么shén meㄕㄣˊ ˙ㄇㄜwhatin 6 of 28 stories
  • 爸爸bà baㄅㄚˋ ˙ㄅㄚ(coll.) fatherin 6 of 28 stories
  • 家jiāㄐㄧㄚhomein 6 of 28 stories
  • 還简 还háiㄏㄞˊstillin 6 of 28 stories
  • 吧ba˙ㄅㄚmodal particle indicating suggestionin 6 of 28 stories
  • 看kànㄎㄢˋto lookin 6 of 28 stories
  • 朋友péng youㄆㄥˊ ㄧㄡˇfriendin 6 of 28 stories

More HSK 1 stories in Traditional, with Taiwan Mandarin audio

The Literate Chinese app has 125 more stories at this estimated level beyond the 28 here, out of 1,000+ graded stories, all available in Traditional characters. It tracks the words you actually know and shows how familiar each story is, so you can pick ones that are just hard enough.

Every story can be narrated in Taiwan Mandarin, shown with zhuyin inline or in the vertical layout Taiwanese books use, and any word you tap can become a flashcard.

Download on the App Store Get it on Google Play
The Literate Chinese app reading a story with pinyin and tap-to-define

Frequently asked questions

Is traditional Chinese harder to read?

A little harder to write, not much harder to read. Traditional characters have more strokes, and in the 28 stories on this page 29% of the characters you read look different from their Simplified forms (學/学, 車/车, 嗎/吗). But reading is recognition, not writing: the extra components often make a character more distinctive (愛 keeps its 心, heart), and after you have seen a form a few hundred times in sentences, stroke count stops mattering. The stories are the same graded stories as the Simplified pages, so apart from the script the difficulty is the same.

Which level should I start at for TOCFL?

Roughly: TOCFL Band A (Levels 1–2) is close to HSK 1–2, Band B (Levels 3–4) to HSK 3–4, and Band C to HSK 5 and above. This page fits TOCFL Band A. If you are new, start with the beginner path; if a story here feels easy, move up a level. The match is approximate because the two exams use different word lists. See our TOCFL guide.

Can I read these stories with zhuyin?

Yes. Turn on Pronunciation and choose Zhuyin (ㄅㄆㄇ) above any story on this page. The zhuyin comes from the same dictionary as the app, so it uses Taiwan readings where that dictionary lists them, and it prints 一 and 不 with their changed tones, as Taiwanese books do. The individual story pages show pinyin; the app has zhuyin, including the vertical layout, on every story. New to zhuyin? Start with our zhuyin guide.

How many characters do I need for HSK 1 reading?

The 2026 HSK 3.0 syllabus has 300 words through HSK 1, written with 248 different characters, and they are the same words in Traditional. You can start well before you know them all: 81% of the characters in these 28 stories are HSK 1 characters, and any word is one tap away from its meaning.

Will the stories stay in Traditional when I open them?

Yes. Opening a story from this page keeps Traditional characters on, and every story page has the same 简/繁 switch, which remembers your choice.

Also useful: Not sure of your level? Take the 2-minute character test · HSK 1 word list · TOCFL guide · Learn zhuyin · Zhuyin reading practice · HSK 1 stories in Simplified · All traditional reading practice

Try reading your first story

The fastest way to make characters stick is to meet them in a story you can actually finish. Literate Chinese has 1,000+ graded stories matched to the words you know — in Mainland or Taiwan Mandarin, Simplified or Traditional. Free on iOS and Android.

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