| 的 | de | of; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); (used after a noun, verb or adjective to form a nominal expression, as in 皮革的[pi2 ge2 de5] "one made of leather" or 跑堂兒的|跑堂儿的[pao3 tang2 r5 de5] "a waiter (literally, one who runs back and forth in a restaurant)" or 新的[xin1 de5] "new one"); also pr. [di4] or [di5] in poetry and songs; really and truly; a taxi; a cab (abbr. for 的士[di1 shi4]); (bound form) bull's-eye; target | 136 | Lv 1 |
| 是 | shì | to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion); variant of 是[shi4] | 39 | Lv 1 |
| 在 | zài | to exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress) | 34 | Lv 1 |
| 我們 | wǒ men | we; us; ourselves; our | 32 | Lv 1 |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); to finish; (used with 得[de2] or 不[bu4] after a verb to express (im)possibility, as in 忘不了[wang4 bu5 liao3] "cannot forget"); (literary) (usually followed by a negative such as 無|无[wu2] or 不[bu4]) completely (not); entirely (not); (not) in the least; (of eyes) bright; clear-sighted; to understand clearly; to understand clearly (variant of 瞭|了[liao3]); unofficial variant of 瞭[liao4] | 28 | Lv 1 |
| 與 | yǔ | and; to give; together with; to take part in; variant of 歟|欤[yu2] | 20 | Lv 5 |
| 這 | zhè | (pronoun) this; these; (coll.) this; (bound form) this; the (followed by a noun); (bound form) this; these (followed by a classifier) (in this sense, commonly pr. [zhei4], esp. in Beijing) | 19 | Lv 1 |
| 但 | dàn | but; yet; however; still; merely; only; just | 15 | Lv 1 |
| 年 | nián | year; grain; harvest (old); CL:個|个[ge4]; variant of 年[nian2]; surname Nian | 15 | Lv 2 |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) | 15 | Lv 1 |
| 中 | zhōng | within; among; in; middle; center; while (doing sth); during; (dialect) OK; all right; to hit (a target); to be struck by (a bullet, illness etc); to win (a prize or lottery); (bound form) China; Chinese; surname Zhong | 14 | Lv 2 |
| 人類 | rén lèi | humanity; human race; mankind | 14 | Lv 10 |
| 能 | néng | can; to be able to; might possibly; ability; (physics) energy; surname Neng | 14 | Lv 1 |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- | 13 | Lv 1 |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my | 13 | Lv 1 |
| 會 | huì | can; to have the skill; to know how to; to be likely to; to be sure to; to meet; to get together; meeting; gathering; (suffix) union; group; association; (bound form) a moment (Taiwan pr. [hui3]); (bound form) to reckon accounts | 13 | Lv 1 |
| 也 | yě | also; too; as well; (not ...) either; (used after a verbal or nominal expression X to indicate that X is an extreme or unexpected case) even (X); (literary) particle having functions similar to 啊[a5]; surname Ye | 12 | Lv 1 |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out numbers digit by digit | 11 | Lv 1 |
| 出 | chū | to go out; to come out; to arise; to occur; to produce; to yield; to go beyond; to exceed; (used after a verb to indicate an outward direction or a positive result); classifier for dramas, plays, operas etc; variant of 出[chu1] (classifier for plays or chapters of classical novels) | 11 | Lv 3 |
| 更 | gèng | to change or replace; to experience; one of the five two-hour periods into which the night was formerly divided; watch (e.g. of a sentry or guard); more; even more; further; still; still more | 11 | Lv 2 |