HSK 4 adds 600 words covering abstract topics, full sentences, complex grammar, and the kind of vocabulary your child would need in an immersion-school classroom or to read a graded news article. This is where most casual learners stop and most serious learners start.
Practicing flashcards once won't stick. Bóyǎ schedules each word for spaced repetition so you review it exactly when you're about to forget. Unlocked on Bóyǎ Family ($9/mo).
Start studying free →HSK 4 maps to roughly CEFR B1/B2 and adds about 600 words. It builds directly on HSK 3 (real conversation: opinions, plans, and past events.), so work through that first if you haven't. Once it sticks, HSK 5 continues with university-level Mandarin: idioms, formal register, full literacy.
The fastest route through this list is spaced repetition: Bóyǎ schedules every word for the moment you are about to forget it rather than re-drilling words you already know. Tones are taught explicitly on every card, and each session ends with you producing the language out loud, not just recognising it.
HSK 4 is organised around 5 themes: Abstract concepts, Complex grammar, News, Work topics, Argument. Studying by theme keeps related words together so they reinforce each other.