Around 1000 words are enough to understand roughly 85% of everyday speech. That is exactly what 1000 Words focuses on: instead of endless grammar tables, you first learn the Chinese vocabulary you will actually meet in real life – nouns, verbs, adjectives and full sentences, each with translation, example sentence and native-speaker audio.
Learn the way that fits your day: as a video to read along, as an audiobook for your commute or for falling asleep, as an ebook, or with the built-in vocabulary trainer that shows you every word again at the scientifically optimal moment (spaced repetition). Everything is available on the website and in the free app for iOS and Android.
| English | Chinese | Example sentence |
|---|---|---|
| the apple | 苹果 | I eat the apple. 我吃苹果。 |
| the book | 书 | She reads the book. 她读书。 |
| the cat | 猫 | The cat is sleeping. 猫在睡觉。 |
| the dog | 狗 | The dog is barking. 狗在叫。 |
| the car | 车 | He drives the car. 他开车。 |
| the house | 房子 | We live in a house. 我们住在房子里。 |
| the chair | 椅子 | She sits on the chair. 她坐在椅子上。 |
| the table | 桌子 | Put the book on the table. 把书放在桌子上。 |
| the window | 窗户 | Open the window. 打开窗户。 |
| the door | 门 | Close the door. 关上门。 |
| the pencil | 铅笔 | I write with the pencil. 我用铅笔写字。 |
| the paper | 纸 | The paper is on the table. 纸在桌子上。 |
| the school | 学校 | The school is big. 学校很大。 |
| the teacher | 老师 | The teacher teaches math. 老师教数学。 |
| the student | 学生 | The student is studying. 学生在学习。 |
| the boy | 男孩 | The boy is playing. 男孩在玩。 |
| the girl | 女孩 | The girl is singing. 女孩在唱歌。 |
| the adult | 大人 | The adult is working. 大人在工作。 |
| the friend | 朋友 | My friend is here. 我的朋友在这里。 |
| the tree | 树 | The tree is tall. 树很高。 |
| to accept | 接受 |
| to add | 添加 |
| to agree | 同意 |
| to allow | 允许 |
| to ask | 询问 |
| to believe | 相信 |
| to borrow | 借 |
| to break | 打破 |
| to bring | 带来 |
| to build | 建造 |
| I like apples | 我喜欢苹果 |
| She is my friend | 她是我的朋友 |
| It is a sunny day | 今天是晴天 |
| He runs fast | 他跑得很快 |
| We are happy | 我们很开心 |
| They play soccer | 他们踢足球 |
Every word narrated and illustrated – read along and repeat.
All vocabulary as audio – including a 3x repetition version, perfect for learning while you sleep.
All words and sentences to look up and read offline.
Spaced-repetition system like flashcards – reviews exactly when you need them.
Short stories built from the words you already know, with audio and tap-to-explain.
Download Premium content and keep learning without internet.
With the 1000 most frequent words you understand about 85% of everyday spoken language. That is why 1000 Words focuses exactly on this core vocabulary – organized into nouns, verbs & adjectives and full sentences.
Research shows the brain consolidates previously learned material during sleep. Our audiobooks with triple repetition are made for this: listen in the evening, relax, and anchor what you learned. Read more in our article on learning while you sleep.
Yes, getting started is free: parts of the videos and audiobooks, the vocabulary trainer, the matching game and previews of all content. Premium unlocks everything – including downloads for offline mode.
For beginners and returners (level A1–B1) who want to build a usable Chinese vocabulary fast – without grammar overload, with native-speaker audio.