Text-to-speech pronunciation
Hear any word in the target language read aloud. Supports a wide range of languages. Plays automatically when a card is flipped — no extra steps.
The Fastest Way to Build Vocabulary: Flashcards + Spaced Repetition
Learn 50 words. Forget 40. Feel frustrated. That cycle isn't a personal failure — it's what happens when you study without a system designed for how memory actually works.
Why vocabulary doesn't stick
The forgetting curve — and how to fight it
Within 24 hours of learning something new, most people forget up to 70% of it. Within a week, even more is gone — unless there's been active review in between.
The solution isn't reviewing everything every day — that's unsustainable. The solution is reviewing each word exactly when it's about to be forgotten. That's what spaced repetition does. Each successful recall at the right moment pushes the forgetting curve back further, requiring less and less frequent review over time.
A word you've reviewed 4 times with spaced repetition will stay in memory far longer than a word you read 20 times in a single session.
What language learners run into
The real obstacles to vocabulary retention
Passive exposure isn't enough
Reading a word in context helps you understand it. But seeing it once or twice doesn't build reliable recall. You need repeated, active retrieval across spaced intervals.
Word lists go stale fast
A vocabulary notebook or phone note is great for adding words. It's terrible for reviewing them. You end up reviewing the same page of early words and ignoring everything added later.
No pronunciation support
Seeing a word is different from knowing how it sounds. Many learners internalize a wrong pronunciation and only discover the mistake months later — when it's already been hardwired.
Hard to organize by topic or level
Travel vocabulary, business vocabulary, and grammar exceptions are completely different. Mixing them in one list creates noise and slows down focused review.
Card structure
What a high-retention vocabulary card looks like
The more channels you use to encode a word — sound, image, sentence — the more ways your brain has to retrieve it.
Front — Prompt
обстоятельство
Russian noun • [audio plays automatically]
🔊 Pronunciation
🖼 Image
🏷 Tag: nouns
Back — Answer
circumstance
"Under no circumstances should you…"
Usage note: formal register
Usage note: formal register
📝 Example sentence
📌 Note
Front: the target language word + audio. Back: translation + example sentence + usage note. All of this fits in one Repetit card.
Spaced Repetition Cycle
1
3
7
14
30
A new word starts at day 1. Recall it correctly and it comes back in 3 days, then 7, then 14, then 30. Forget it — and it resets. Words you know well stop appearing every day. Words you're struggling with come back sooner.
Practical setup
How to organize Repetit for language learning
One setup that works across any language and proficiency level.
1
Create collections by topic, not just by language
Instead of one giant "Spanish" deck, create separate collections: Travel, Business, Verbs B2, Idioms. Focused review is faster and more satisfying.
2
Import existing word lists
Have a spreadsheet or vocabulary export from a textbook? Use CSV or XLSX import to load hundreds of words instantly. Format: first column = front, second column = back.
3
Enable text-to-speech on every card
Hear every word pronounced correctly from the moment you add it. This is especially important for tonal languages (Mandarin, Vietnamese) and languages with non-phonetic spelling (French, English).
4
Add images for concrete nouns and verbs
A photo of an apple is faster to process than the word "manzana → apple." Visual associations bypass translation and build more direct word-concept links.
5
Review daily — even for 10 minutes
Consistency beats intensity. 10 minutes every day produces far better results than an hour twice a week. The SRS system only works if you show up regularly.
6
Add new words in batches of 5–10
Adding 50 new words at once floods your review queue. Add 5–10 per day — this keeps daily sessions manageable while building vocabulary steadily over weeks.
Built for language learners
Features that make vocabulary actually stick
Voice recording
Record yourself pronouncing a word and play it back. Compare with the TTS version. Useful for shadowing practice and fixing pronunciation habits early.
Images on cards
Add a photo to any card to build a direct visual memory link. For vocabulary, this often beats translation as a recall cue — especially for concrete nouns.
Tags and filtering
Tag cards by grammar category, difficulty, or topic. Filter your review session to only verbs, or only cards tagged "B2" — focus where you need it most.
CSV & XLSX import
Import vocabulary exports from textbooks, Anki, or any spreadsheet. Thousands of words can be added in seconds — with front and back text already mapped.
Offline study
Review on a plane, during a commute, or anywhere without Wi-Fi. All cards and audio are stored locally on your device — no connection required.
How fast can you grow your vocabulary?
Realistic numbers with daily practice
Adding 10 new words per day and reviewing consistently: ~300 words per month, ~3,600 per year.
For context: conversational fluency in most languages requires 2,000–3,000 high-frequency words. At this pace, you'd cover that in under a year — with 10–15 minutes of daily practice.
The key is not adding more words — it's reviewing consistently. Words added but not reviewed are wasted effort. Repetit's daily review queue handles this automatically: it shows only what you're about to forget, so nothing slips through.
📸 Image: Collections screen for language learner
Repetit app showing multiple language collections: "Spanish — Travel", "Spanish — Business", "French Verbs", each with a progress bar showing cards learned. Phone screen mockup, dark background.
Common questions
FAQ: Flashcards for language learning
How many words can I realistically learn per day?
Most learners comfortably retain 10–20 new words per day. The bottleneck isn't the system — it's adding cards and reviewing consistently. Add more if you have time, but don't sacrifice review quality for quantity.
Should I learn isolated words or phrases?
Both work, but phrases tend to be more useful for speaking. Use isolated words to build base vocabulary, then add example sentences (on the back of the card) to show the word in context. Many learners find that learning a word in a memorable sentence makes it stick faster.
Can I use Repetit for any language?
Yes. Repetit supports any language on both sides of a card. Text-to-speech covers a wide range of languages including Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic, and more.
Should I put native language → target language, or the reverse?
Both directions are useful, and some learners create two cards per word. Native → target language tests production (harder). Target → native tests recognition (easier). Experienced learners often move to target → target (a definition or synonym in the target language), which builds deeper understanding.
Is there a difference between active and passive vocabulary?
Yes. Passive vocabulary (words you recognize) builds faster with flashcards. Active vocabulary (words you can produce) requires more repetition plus actual speaking practice. Flashcards primarily train recognition — to activate a word fully, also use it in sentences and conversation.
What's the best time of day to review?
Mornings tend to work well for fresh encoding; evenings are good for review before sleep (sleep consolidates memory). Most importantly: pick a consistent time and treat it as non-negotiable. Consistency matters more than timing.
Start building your vocabulary
Create your first language collection today
Add your first words, enable pronunciation, and let Repetit schedule the reviews. Free to start — no card required.