100 Most Common Chinese Characters (Pinyin, Tones & Meaning)
A handful of characters do most of the work in written Chinese. These 100 are ranked by how often they appear across a large, natural sample of Mandarin — learn them first and the rest of the language opens up fast.
Updated Juni 2026
Written Chinese is famously top-heavy: a small number of characters account for a huge share of everything you read. Master these 100 first and you will recognise the bulk of the characters on almost any page. They are ranked here by how often they appear in a large, natural body of Mandarin text — so number 1 really is the single most useful character to know.
- 1
ya; kamata
- 2
mimi; yangu
- 3
wewe; ninyi (rasmi isiyo rasmi, kinyume cha 您)
- 4
yeye; wake
- 5
kuwa; kukaa
- 6
kusema; kuambia
- 7
mtu; watu
- 8
kuwa; ni
- 9
kamilisha; kumalizika
- 10
kutaka; kuomba
- 11
kisha; karibu
- 12
na; kwa
- 13
mahali; kitu
- 14
hii; hili
- 15
hakika; lazima
- 16
mungu; kuzaliwa kwa jua
- 17
kuwa na; kumiliki
- 18
kwa; sababu
- 19
pia; kama vile
- 20
wote; yote
- 21
mfalme; mfalme
- 22
hapana; si
- 23
kutoka; kwa
- 24
ardhi; udongo
- 25
yule; ile
- 26
juu; juu ya
- 27
tena; tena
- 28
kwenda; kujitokeza
- 29
kufanya; kusababisha
- 30
kuja; kuwadia
- 31
itakuwa; kufa
- 32
na; pamoja na
- 33
ndani; kati
- 34
kufikia; kuwasili
- 35
sahihi; sawa
- 36
moja; mmoja
- 37
kutoa; kusambaza
- 38
kutembea; kwenda
- 39
kusubiri; kutupa
- 40
(kihusishi cha umiliki); yeye
- 41
kigezo cha zamani
- 42
kubaki; kushikilia
- 43
mambo; ukweli
- 44
hifu; kumfunika
- 45
kufanya; kuandika
- 46
kutumia; matumizi
- 47
kuelekea; kukabili
- 48
kihusishi cha mwisho wa kauli
- 49
ndani; ndani ya
- 50
mwenye; bwana
- 51
na; zaidi
- 52
kupiga kelele; kupiga kelele
- 53
yeye
- 54
kuonekana; kama
- 55
ndiyo; eh
- 56
muda ya
- 57
ukuta; jiji
- 58
kutafuta; kuomba
- 59
kuishi; kukaa
- 60
kihusishi cha swali
- 61
dong; ding dong (kengele)
- 62
muda kaburi
- 63
kuona; kukutana
- 64
kupata; kukamatia
- 65
pili; ijayo
- 66
kuchukua; kushikilia
- 67
wengi; umati
- 68
watu; raia
- 69
kufa; pasivo
- 70
kitengo; binafsi
- 71
kutoa sadaka; kuabudu
- 72
kufanya; kutengeneza
- 73
kuweza; kunusu
- 74
mkono; mtu aliyesomewa
- 75
kali; kwa sudi
- 76
siku; jua
- 77
kuangalia; kuona
- 78
kufanana; kuwa kama
- 79
kuchota; kucheza chombo
- 80
jina; nomino
- 81
lakini; walakini
- 82
kawaida; za kawaida
- 83
kung'aa; kung'ara
- 84
kula; kula kwa
- 85
chumba cha jumba
- 86
kusikia; kusikia
- 87
kubwa; kikubwa
- 88
kama; sawa
- 89
kupanga; foleni
- 90
moja; moja
- 91
mbili; jozi
- 92
nyumba; familia
- 93
nani; mtu yeyote
- 94
kufa; kurudi
- 95
kutoa; kuwasilisha
- 96
dhahiri; tahadhari
- 97
mtakatifu; takatifu
- 98
kama; kama vile
- 99
mkutano; makubaliano
- 100
rahisi; rasmi isiyo rasmi
Practice what you just learned
Read real Chinese with tap-to-reveal pinyin, tone colors and audio — and save words to spaced-repetition flashcards.