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HKDSE Chinese Language Paper 1 Mock (2027): Set Classical Texts and Unseen Passages with Answers
TUTORZONE ORIGINAL MOCK PAPER · HKDSE CHINESE LANGUAGE PAPER 1 (READING)
Written to the HKEAA 2027 framework: the Chinese Language public examination has just two papers worth 85% between them (SBA adds 15%). Paper 1 Reading is 40% over 1 h 30 min – Part A tests the set classical Chinese material at 30% of the paper and Part B sets unseen modern and classical passages at 70%; every question is compulsory. This paper has 4 Part A items and 2 Part B passages (including an original modern piece) with answers and mark allocation.
What is in HKDSE Chinese Language Paper 1?
Direct answer: Chinese has just two public papers: Paper 1 Reading is 40% of the subject over 1 h 30 min and Paper 2 Writing is 45% over 2 h 15 min, 85% together, with SBA at 15%. Within Paper 1, Part A on the set classical texts is 30% of the paper and Part B unseen passages 70%, all compulsory.
Assessment at a glance (2027)
| Component | Content | Weighting | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part A (set classical texts) | Tests the prescribed classical Chinese material; 30% of the paper | 30%（全卷） | 25-30 min |
| Part B (unseen passages, classical and modern) | Questions on unseen passages; 70% of the paper | 70%（全卷） | 60-65 min |
| Whole paper | All questions compulsory; formats include short questions, multiple choice, tables and fill-ins | 40%（全科） | 1 h 30 min |
Ninety minutes: about 25-30 for Part A, whose set texts must be secure, and 60-65 for Part B. Read the questions before the passage and annotate the lines the questions target; quoting the passage’s own wording is what earns the quotation marks.
How this paper was built
This is a TutorZone original mock paper: the questions follow the 2027 framework’s structure (Paper 1 at 40% over 1 h 30 min, Part A 30% and Part B 70%) and the answers are our own.
Part A quotes public-domain classical works (the Analects, Fan Zhongyan, Han Yu, Su Xun) and Part B uses an original TutorZone modern passage plus a public-domain extract from Liu Zongyuan. No HKEAA question paper or in-copyright text is reproduced.
Pacing
| Section | Marks | Suggested time | What to do first |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part A (set classical texts) | 30%（全卷） | about 25-30 min | Loan characters, multiple meanings, sentence sense and themes must be secure |
| Part B (unseen passages, classical and modern) | 70%（全卷） | about 60-65 min | Read the questions first, then annotate the passage |
| Whole paper | 40%（全科） | 90 minutes in total | Never leave a blank: write at least the key terms |
How should the 90 minutes be split?
Direct answer: cap Part A at 25-30 minutes (know the set texts down to word meanings and techniques) and spend about 60-65 minutes on Part B, reading the questions first and quoting the passage in every answer. Leave no blank.
Part A: set classical texts (4 questions)
The quoted lines are public-domain works; give the word meaning first, then the sentence sense.
Question 1 (6 marks)
Part A (set classical text, sample item): from the Analects, Xue Er – “to learn and in due time practise it, is that not a pleasure? To have friends come from afar, is that not a joy? To remain unmoved when others do not know you, is that not a gentleman?”
(a) Explain “說” and “慍”; (b) what does “時” in “時習” mean? (c) Briefly state the three levels of learning the sentences point to.
Question 2 (6 marks)
From Fan Zhongyan’s “Record of Yueyang Tower”: “to be first in worrying about the world’s troubles and last in enjoying its pleasures.”
(a) What outlook do these lines express? (b) How do they relate to “not to rejoice at external things, nor grieve for oneself” earlier in the text?
Question 3 (6 marks)
From Han Yu’s “On Teachers”: “a teacher is one who transmits the Way, passes on learning and resolves doubt.”
(a) Explain the use of “所以” and “受”; (b) why does the author write this passage?
Question 4 (7 marks)
From Su Xun’s “On the Six States”: “the six states fell not because their weapons were poor or their fighting bad, but because they bribed Qin.”
(a) What argumentative move is this? (b) How does he account for states that did not bribe? (c) Do you think he is writing only about history?
Part B: unseen passages (2, including an original modern piece)
Read the questions before the passage and quote the passage’s own wording.
Question 1 (14 marks)
Read the following passage (original, TutorZone copyright):
“Old Chan’s shoe stall sits at the far end of the market, and has done for thirty-seven years. Two low stools, a stitching machine and a wooden box that is always full of heels and thread. My mother says that in the year I was born he resoled a pair of her leather shoes for five dollars and polished the uppers without being asked. Thirty-seven years later I brought the same pair back. He glanced up, did not ask the price, and said only: “still this pair.” He bent to the stitching, his hands as slow as ever, and the shoes outlasted new ones. I understood then that he had never only been mending soles – he was stitching a stretch of time back into place. When news of the redevelopment came, the stall was surrounded; he said nothing, closed the lid and began to pack up.”
(a) What descriptive technique is used in listing “two low stools, a stitching machine and a wooden box”, and what does it achieve? (b) What is the function of the sentence “he had never only been mending soles”? (c) Why does the writer give figures such as “five dollars” and “thirty-seven years”? (d) What is the theme of the passage?
Question 2 (10 marks)
Read this classical extract (public domain): “About a hundred fish in the pool seemed to swim in emptiness with nothing to rest on. Sunlight pierced to the bottom and their shadows lay on the stones, still and motionless; then suddenly they darted away, coming and going in a flash, as if sharing the visitor’s delight.” (Liu Zongyuan, “Record of the Little Stone Pool”)
(a) How does the author describe the fish, and by what technique? (b) What mood does the passage convey, and how does it relate to the tone of the whole piece?
Where are the answers, and is there a mark allocation?
Direct answer: each question is followed by an answer-and-marks block: Part A gives word meaning, sentence sense, technique and the marks, Part B gives the quotation, the explanation and the marks (theme item: 2 marks for the summary, 2 for textual support).
Part A answers and mark allocation
Question 1
(a) “說” is a loan for “悅”, meaning delight (2 marks); “慍” means resentment or irritation (1 mark). (b) “時” means at due times, regularly (1 mark). (c) The joy of learning and practising; the joy of exchanging ideas with others; and the cultivation of not resenting being unrecognised (2 marks).
Question 2
(a) It expresses taking the world’s burdens as one’s own and putting public duty before private pleasure (3 marks). (b) “Not to rejoice at external things nor grieve for oneself” is the state of being unmoved by gain or loss, the foundation of cultivation; “first to worry, last to enjoy” then turns that cultivation into responsibility for the world – from detachment to active commitment (3 marks).
Question 3
(a) “所以” means “that by which” – the means – not the modern “therefore” (2 marks); “受” is a loan for “授”, to transmit (1 mark). (b) He defines the teacher’s role first – transmitting the Way, passing on learning, resolving doubt – in order to set up his criticism of scholars who were ashamed to learn from teachers (3 marks).
Question 4
(a) It is refute-then-assert: he dismisses the usual explanations (poor weapons, poor fighting) and then states his thesis (3 marks). (b) He argues that states which did not bribe lost because they lost the support of those who did, so the blame still rests on the bribing (2 marks). (c) No – he uses the six states to criticise contemporary policy of buying peace from Liao and Western Xia, a case of using the past to criticise the present (2 marks).
Part B answers and mark allocation
Question 1
(a) Detailed description (plain sketching) (2 marks); the simple objects set off Chan’s modesty and the durability of his craft and prepare the theme of time (2 marks). (b) It is the pivotal sentence linking the surface (mending shoes) to the deeper sense of mending time and human ties (3 marks). (c) The figures make the span of time and the continuity of goodwill concrete, and form a contrast between five dollars and thirty-seven years (3 marks). (d) Theme: in a fast-changing city the craft and warmth of ordinary people hold a community’s memory together, and the redevelopment makes that worth protecting (4 marks).
Question 2
(a) He uses indirect description: “swimming in emptiness” and “shadows on the stones” convey the clarity of the water, and “still and motionless” against “darted away” sets up a contrast of stillness and motion (5 marks). (b) The fish’s delight reflects the visitor’s brief pleasure, but the piece turns from joy to bleak solitude; the joy here is short-lived and throws his later exile into relief (5 marks).
Where are Paper 1 marks most easily lost?
Direct answer: memorising translations only and then failing the technique questions; answering Part B without quoting the passage; blowing the time split, since Part B is 70% of the paper; and leaving blanks.
Where these marks are usually lost
| Mistake | What it looks like | What it costs | Instead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memorising translations only | Rote-learning the modern rendering | Part A wants word meaning, sentence sense and technique | Keep a four-column note: meaning, sense, theme, technique |
| Answers without quotation | Paraphrasing in your own words | The mark scheme asks for the passage’s wording | Quote the key phrase, then explain |
| Poor time split | Spending half the time on Part A | Part B is 70% of the paper | Cap Part A at 30 minutes and move on |
| Leaving blanks | Skipping what you cannot do | Reading papers give marks per question | Write at least the key terms or a quotation |
How to use this paper
First sit: no references, the full 90 minutes.
Mark it: check word meanings and techniques in Part A, and whether Part B answers quote the passage.
Second sit: redo it three to seven days later inside 75 minutes with no blanks.
What should I do after this paper?
Direct answer: build a four-column note for every set text (word meaning, sentence sense, theme, technique); fix Part B answers as quote, explain, conclude; drill past-paper questions by question type; then redo this paper inside 75 minutes.
FAQ
Is this an HKEAA paper?
No. The questions, answers and mark allocation are TutorZone originals; the Part A quotations and the classical Part B extract are public-domain works and the modern passage is original.
How many Chinese papers are there?
Two: Paper 1 Reading 40% (1 h 30 min) and Paper 2 Writing 45% (2 h 15 min), 85% together; SBA adds 15%.
Which set texts are prescribed?
The list is published in the HKEAA curriculum documents and can change; always follow your school’s and HKEAA’s latest version. The items here demonstrate how such texts are examined.
Official references
| Resource | What to check |
|---|---|
| HKEAA HKDSE subject information (Chinese Language) | Confirm Paper 1’s 40% in 1 h 30 min, Part A 30% and Part B 70%, and SBA at 15% |
| https://www.tutorzone.com.hk/en-dse-chinese-language-paper-1-reading-drill-guide/ | Paper 1 drilling guide |
| https://www.tutorzone.com.hk/en-dse-chinese-language-paper-2-mock-2027/ | Chinese Paper 2 (Writing) mock |
Related: practice area · Paper 2 writing mock · the full Chinese drilling guide
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