Adjectives are the color in your Mandarin sentences – without them, everything’s just ‘good’ or ‘not good’. That gets old fast. This list gathers around 1,000 of the most common Chinese adjectives you’ll actually use, from 大 to 漂亮, so you can describe people, food, places, and moods with precision.
Every entry pairs a clear meaning with a natural example sentence, so you see exactly how the adjective behaves in real Chinese – not a lifeless translation. There’s audio playback right in the table, because your ears need practice just as much as your eyes.
Ready to give your Chinese vocab a little extra sparkle? Scroll to the bottom of this article to find the free downloadable printable Most Common Chinese Adjectives flashcards and the free printable Most Common Chinese Adjectives vocabulary list PDF, both made to help you review with less stress and a lot more confidence.
Want more than one list? Browse our Chinese section for more Yak Yacker study pages, printable lists, and quiz-friendly review material.
Quick Quiz
Think you can match an adjective to its meaning in a flash? Give the quick quiz below a go – no pressure, just a friendly check.
Browse the Full List
| Grammar Word | Pinyin | Function | Meaning | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 民主 | mínzhǔ | Other | democracy | |
| 气愤 | qìfèn | Other | indignant/furious | |
| 气派 | qìpài | Other | impressive/stylish/magnificent/imposing manner/dignified air | |
| 沉重/沈重 | chénzhòng | Other | heavy/hard/serious/critical | |
| 沉默 | chénmò | Other | taciturn/uncommunicative/silent | |
| 沙哑 | shāyǎ | Other | hoarse/rough | |
| 没什么 | méishénme | Other | nothing/it doesn't matter/it's nothing/never mind | |
| 没关系 | méiguānxi | Other | it doesn't matter | |
| 没落 | mòluò | Other | to decline/to wane | |
| 沮丧 | jǔsàng | Other | dispirited/dejected/dismayed | |
| 油 | yóu | Other | oil/fat/grease/petroleum/to apply tung oil, paint or varnish/oily/greasy/glib/cunning | |
| 油腻 | yóunì | Other | greasy food | |
| 洁白 | jiébái | Other | spotlessly white/pure white | |
| 洗 xǐ | to wash | Other | 先洗手。Xiān xǐ shǒu. | |
| 活泼 | huópō | Other | lively/vivacious/brisk/active/(chemistry) reactive | |
| 活该 | huógāi | Other | (coll.) serve sb right/deservedly/ought/should | |
| 活跃 | huóyuè | Other | active/lively/excited/to enliven/to brighten up | |
| 流利 | liúlì | Other | fluent | |
| 流行 | liúxíng | Other | (of a contagious disease etc) to spread/to propagate/(of a style of clothing, song etc) popular/fashionable | |
| 浅 | qiǎn | Other | shallow/light (color) | |
| 浅显 | qiǎnxiǎn | Other | (of written or spoken material) easy to understand | |
| 浅薄 | qiǎnbó | Other | superficial | |
| 浓 | nóng | Other | concentrated/dense/strong (smell etc) | |
| 浓厚 | nónghòu | Other | dense/thick (fog, clouds etc)/to have a strong interest in/deep/fully saturated (color) | |
| 浪漫 | làngmàn | Other | romantic |
Free Most Common Chinese Adjectives PDF and Flashcards to Download
Use the purple Most Common Chinese Adjectives vocabulary list button to grab your 100% free PDF, no signup needed. Then tap the teal Most Common Chinese Adjectives flashcards button for the matching free flashcards, also completely free and ready to print.
