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The Best Flashcard Apps for Learning Languages

Updated: 14. Feb, 2023

Flashcards are excellent tools for learning languages. However, they aren’t the most exciting things to make. Creating flashcards every time you have to learn a new word isn’t only tiresome but also very time-consuming. 

Yet, flashcards are great for memorizing and making your language learning process much more effective. So, how do you use a flash card and skip the stress and time it takes to create one? 

Enter—flashcards apps for learning languages. 

Flashcard tools automate the creation, so you can skip design and jump right into learning a new language. This way, you can spend less time studying or increasing what you learn. 

This article is a review of the best flashcards apps you can use to learn a new language effectively. At the end of this post, you can decide the best flashcard app for your learning goals. 

Let’s get into it. 

Top 10 Flashcard Apps for Learning Languages

There are ten special flashcards apps you can use to learn a new language. Let’s check them out below: 

Lingopie 

Lingopie is a functional flashcard learning app that lets you learn languages through shows and TV dramas. One of its most prominent features, flashcards, is created from each show’s subtitles. So, you only have to click on the terms you don’t know and the app will keep them for you to learn later. If you want to learn at that moment, you can click on the words you don’t know in the subtitle section to get their translation and audio pronunciation. 

Lingopie creates a flashcard for every word you click on by default so that you can revisit them after a movie. It offers nine languages for learning. This ranges from Spanish to German, French, Italian, Japanese, English, and others. So, you only have to select a movie and pick the language you want to learn. Every show offers two types of subtitles, and you get instant translation by clicking on a word. 

Besides flashcards, various features are available to enhance your learning process, including the built-in playback feature. This function allows you to choose a subtitled language and your target language. You can rewind or fast-track the subtitles to track words you missed or don’t understand. Afterward, the flashback feature stores these words for future practice. 

You can then replay the flashbacks during a movie or afterward to memorize their meanings and pronunciations. 

This facilitates the learning experience by improving your memorization skills and enabling you to understand and retain what you learn faster. So, if you like to learn a new language in a relaxed and laid-back way with flashcards, Lingo pie is your sure bet. 

Anki

Anki is famous for helping users learn new languages quickly with flashcards. One of the outstanding features of using Anki flashcards is the Spaced Repetition System (SRS). This feature tracks the words you have challenges with on flashcards and pops them up frequently for you to memorize for better retention. 

However, the most prominent area where Anki thrives is customization. It lets you create the cards precisely how you want them to be. So, say you prefer the answers to appear before the question, or you like the question in your native language and response in the target language, the app allows you to personalize the settings. 

Anki has several media options you can explore to improve your learning. You can learn using different formats like embedded audio clips, images, and videos. It stores over 100,000 flashcards, so there are endless possibilities for what you can understand. 

The Anki app is an excellent pick if you want a personalized learning experience, spaced repetition system, and thousands of flashcards to explore when learning. 

Quizlet 

Quizlet is a flashcard learning application for effective memorization and faster learning. When learning a language becomes overwhelming with many words to grasp, the Quizlet app has you covered. Simply create a collection of different digital flashcards to aid your learning experience. Quizlet stands out from many flashcards learning apps by making it very interactive. For example, users review their flashcards and share them with others. They also receive immediate feedback to monitor their performance when studying flashcards. The analytics examines their responses and reports success. The consistent review constantly updates you on your progress so you can improve. 

Quizlet app tests your performance in different ways, including definition selection and matching pairs game. These activities allow users to test their strengths and weaknesses in specific areas.

Lastly, it offers various learning methods for learners to choose what works for them. So, whether you like to memorize, understand or study new words, you’ll find tools that suit your goals. 

It’s easy to create study flashcards on Quizlet. A free flashcard maker on the app helps you design flashcards seamlessly. All you have to do is to include a term and a definition, and the flashcard maker will get to work. If you like, you can add images from the library. After this, your flashback is all set, and you can learn and share it with others.

The best part? You don’t have to create your flashcards. There are tons of ready-made flashcards from users around various topics. Hence, you can browse through them and find the vocabularies you want. 

Quizlet is an excellent app for creating highly interactive digital flashcard experiences. Also, it’s a perfect choice for you if you like the idea of learning from readily available flashcards. 

FluentU

FluentU is an excellent flashcard learning app for learning a new language through movie clips, new videos, and other video types. Every video comes with an interactive flashcard that contains an image, grammar details, audio pronunciation, audio recordings, etc. Definitions and explanations are always within context, so you can understand the meaning of a word based on how it was used in the video.

There are vocabulary sets generated from each video. However, you can build your vocabulary set by including words in your card selection for a personalized experience. Another feature that makes FluentU functional in learning new languages is the spaced repetition system. With this feature, you will optimally learn words you find challenging based on continued practice. 

There are several real-world movies, news, and music videos you can understand your chosen language from. Every video caption is translated. So, select a word from the caption section, and you will find an in-context definition and example sentences that explain what the words mean. FluentU is good for learning new words through videos with flashcards describing each word. So, if you like this approach, consider opting for FluentU. 

Drops 

Drops is a flashcard learning app that gives a gamification effect when using flashcards. It is excellent for learning specific languages whose learning materials are difficult to daunting to find. For example, it offers languages like Samoan, Vietnamese, Maori, and Icelandic.

The learning process is entirely visual, with words and phrases inscribed on flashcards for learners to learn. The lessons are broken into 5-minute sessions, making them bite-sized and easily consumable. This way, you can stay consistent in learning despite a busy schedule to achieve your desired result. 

The Drops user interface is clean, fun, and easy to use. It comes with many illustrations to aid your visual learning. With over 45 languages, there are many options to explore. This includes Korean, Japanese, German, French, and others. 

The drops app is guaranteed to help you learn languages faster if you are a visual learner. You will see examples of the words you learn in images, enabling you to understand and recall them. 

Its aesthetically pleasing layout keeps you engaged in learning. The fun colors, structure, and functional design make learning with Drops much more enjoyable. 

Tiny cards 

Tiny cards is a flashcard app created by Duolingo. It’s engaging, fun, and easy to navigate. Essentially, it generates most of its vocabulary from Duolingo. Hence, if you already use Duolingo, you will find Tiny cards pretty easy to use. Even if you don’t use Duolingo, you would still see the app functional for your goals. This is because the app is independent of Duolingo although the latter created it. 

There are tons of cards you can review when learning. Besides vocabulary, the flashcards provide pronunciation, illustrations, and demonstrations for the words and phrases you see. 

Lastly, Tiny cards help you track your goals through a vocabulary divided into packs of cards with different topics. You would have to complete one pack before moving onto the next. This way, you will know how many packs are left and be motivated to complete the process.

So, if you are looking for a fun layout with a similar vocabulary to Duolingo, you can try tiny cards. 

Brainscape 

Brainscape flashcards learning software provides flashcards to facilitate your learning experience. It improves retention by letting you repeat the most difficult words during intervals.

Brainscape offers an effective customization process by allowing you to create your flashcard based on the words you must recall. 

It provides a shareable feature that allows you to share flashcards with other users. So, if you learn as a group or are working on a project together, you could compile and share flashcards featuring topics you are working on. 

If you are looking for an app that will help you stay committed, Brainscape is an excellent choice. You can set goals and track your success with accurate data analytics that updates you about your results.

So, find flashcards by exploring thousands of classes created by teachers and users. With  Brainscape, you can create your flashcards with the website’s easy-to-use tools and study with spaced repetition for better retention.

Additionally, collaborate with other users and share your flashcards with friends. Brainscape gives the platform and the tools to learn in the best way possible. 

Cram 

Cram flashcard app is an excellent software for building your vocabulary. It provides different learning modes for you to learn your way, depending on your device and interests. 

For example, the card mode supplies different cards for you to read and memorize. On the other hand, the cram mode enables a fast-paced repetition process. Also, the memorization mode eliminates familiar vocabulary and introduces unfamiliar words for you to remember. Finally, the game mode gamifies the process. So, all you have to do is to choose the model that suits your goals and learn. 

Cram organizes your learning process by separating the flashcards decks you create from favorite decks and the decks you study frequently. 

This allows you to easily pick what you want to study, facilitating a good experience on the app.

Lingvist 

Lingvist is an effective flashcard app for learning new languages faster. It has a straightforward design and navigation approach that makes it easy for you to perform tasks and understand what you learn. Its flashcards provide illustrative examples for users to understand the words they know and use them contextually. Also, it comes with audio pronunciation that lets you listen to how the words are pronounced so you can model the pronunciation effectively. 

It’s easy to monitor your progress with Lingvist. Some graphics show you your goals and how close you are to finishing them. This helps you to know your performance level and find ways to improve. 

Lingvist is an excellent software for flashcard learning, especially with its simple design and audio learning features that make navigation and learning easy.

Memrise 

Memrise flashcard app is effective for its spaced repetition and game-like features. This is because apart from learning words fast by continuous repetition, you can have fun while you are at it. It is excellent for beginners who want to expand their vocabularies by learning new words in their target language every day. Every course has a ‘‘learn page’’ where the topics are categorized into different levels divided into “words and phrases” and “Grammar.” 

Each word and phrase starts with a flashcard. The flashcards contain videos of a speaker pronouncing the words. It also features a translation for a better understanding of the words. 

It tests your knowledge by showing words and asking if you understand them. The “Grammar level” demands that you identify each pattern. The “review pages” examine words you’ve marked as learned and test you on them based on spaced repetition. So, if you love spaced repetition and flashcards, you will love the Memrise app. 

Common Frequently Asked Questions on Flashcard Apps 

Do Flashcards work for language learning? 

Flashcards are a popular way to learn and memorize facts. However, they aren’t for memorizing facts only. They are great for memorizing any information worth remembering, including a new language. Instead of writing the words in a book, you can create them automatically using a tool to save time and make learning more fun. 

What are free language flashcards? 

There are various language flashcards to learn a new language for free. 

Although many include a payment plan, you can learn a new language using the free method. These language flashcards include Memrise, Lingvist, Cram, Tiny cards, Drops, and other flashcards apps mentioned above. 

What are the common study strategies using Flashcards? 

Here are the following strategies to use flashcards effectively: 

  • Create your flashcards using a flashcard app 
  • Use pictures 
  • Keep it at one question per card
  • Divide complex phrases into separate flashcards 
  • Read the flashcards out loud 
  • Combine other study strategies 

Conclusion 

Flashcards apps are effective in saving time and making the learning process easier when learning a new language. They also facilitate faster understanding and memorization of new words. This article highlights the ten best flashcard software you can use to learn a language effectively. Choose from the options discussed to select the best Flashcard apps for your needs.

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