8 Ways To Create

11/30/2016 8WaystoCreateBetterFlashcards
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8 Ways to Create Better Flashcards
Im an Anki nut. In some sense, I owe three of my
languages to Anki. One of my favorite things about Anki is
its exibility; you can make ashcards in any way you
choose.
Once youve created and memorized a lot of ashcards (I

recently passed 20,000 ashcardsgeesh), youll start to notice that not all cards are
created equal. Some ashcards are easy to remember, theyteach you precisely what you
want to learn, and they generally make you smile when you see them. Others make you
want to throw your smartphone out the window. Good ashcards can make the
di erence between sticking with a language until uency or giving up after a few months,
so Im making this guide to help others learn from some of my terrible, terrible ashcard-
related mistakes.
Principle 1: Use Pictures

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ 1/41
Principle 1: Use Pictures

Theres a neat principlethat came out of cognitive psychology in the 60s and 70scalled
the Pictorial Superiority E ect.The basic idea is that we remember pictures ridiculously
well, and we pretty much suck at remembering words. Unfortunately for us, languages
are full ofwords, not pictures, so at least on the surface, were screwed.
But theres a trick.
If you compare your ability to recall a random picture like thisand a
word like Apple, youre going to have amuch easier time
remembering the picture. But what about a picturewith a word?
Studies show that pictures with words are evenmore memorable
than pictures alone. Why? You wrestle with the meaning of that word
in conjunction with the picture. Why is APPLE there? What does that
sculpture have to do with apples? In the process of wresting with the
combined meaning of a word and a picture, you store both of them
deeply in your memory.
So add pictures. All the time (at least on one side of each ashcard). Youll remember a bit
better if those pictures havesomething to do with what youre learning, but that
shouldnt be hard, given the 45 billion images currently hanging out on Google Images.
I never used to do this (in my personal French deck, for instance, most of my grammar
cards are just ll in the blank exercises without pictures), but I started adding pictures to
my grammar exercises in Russian, and it made ahugedi erence. Now I dont make any
cards without pictures.
Principle 2: More is Better

Some words are hard to remember, and some languages are full of hard to remember
words. For the rst couple of months, Russian kicked my butt. I dutifully made my cards,
added pictures, and studied daily, and yet couldnt seem to remember anything for longer
than two weeks. Sometimes you need more stimulation than a single ashcard to
remember information thats particularly far removed from your every-day experiences.
For me, Russian words were simply too weird to remember easily, with their strange
sounds and odd-looking letters. Fortunately, you can make multiple, di erent ashcards
for a single word. When I tried this in Russian, I stopped forgetting.
The more cards you make for a single topic, the easier and better youll memorize it. At
least for words, there are two main avors of ashcards worth using: cards that test
comprehension (whats achien?) and cards that test production (whats a furry animal
with a waggy tail that chases cats?)
The former put the word alone on the front side of the card:
Comprehension Cards
Your job is to think about what the word means. Thesecards do an awesome job of
building associations into a new word pictures, sounds, bits of grammar, etc. That way,
the next time you encounter that word in a new context while reading or listening, those
associations will come right back. In general, these cards have a single word or two on
their front sides without any added context. On the back, theyll have pictures, example
sentences, and any other goodies you decide to put on them.
If you move the word to the back side of the card (and the picture or context to the
front), youre training a di erent ability:
Production Cards
These cards require you to recall a word (chien), its grammatical features (un
masculine), its spelling and its pronunciation. They work as reinforcement for passive
cards and make the words easier to recall when you want to use them in speaking or
writing.
Ive tried to use exclusively production cards, thinking that I would save myself time, but
it didnt work; I couldnt remember chien if I didnt see the exact same dog picture,
which didnt happen very often in real life. Now, I do both types of cards whenever I can,
and I only skip the productive cards if Im sureI never want to say a word (but will
probably read it). When in doubt, just make both. Anki makes it easy to do this without
adding any extra time, and it will make your overall review process much easier. I keep
grammatical and pronunciation information on the back-side of both cards, because if I
cant pronounce the word or use it in a sentence properly, then its basically useless for
speaking or writing. I want to reinforce a words sound and usage whenever I can.
Principle 3: Keep it Simple
Bad: Multiple answers required
When you see words grouped together on vocabulary lists, you may be tempted to keep
them in their original groups. Why spend time making seven cards for the weekdays when
you could make one or two? In my rst French deck, I grouped together the days of the
week, the months of the year, various types of fruit, and anything else I could jam into a
single ashcard. This was unfortunate. Until I split them up, I wasnt able to remember any
of these words.
Cards like these are problematic because your ability to recall each of the answers is
di erent. If you start o knowing Monday very well, Tuesday decently and
Wednesday poorly, then youll be repeating all three every time you have a problem
with any of them. Its too much, both from a time standpoint (why waste time repeating
Monday when you know it well already?) and from a learning standpoint (youre
repeating the card too often to push any words into long-term memory). Separate cards
like this into their smallest constituent parts, each with a single answer:
Good: Single Answers
Whenever possible, your goal is to test one conceptper card, because it will save you
time in the long run. A simple card is easy to remember and helps produce a quick
response; you either know it or you dont, and if you dont, then youll repeat it until you
do. Net time wasted on Monday: seconds. Net time spent memorizing Wednesday
very well: seconds. Sweet.
A note: There are shades of grey when it comes to the one-concept idea.
Youre welcome is a single concept, but you certainly could make two
cards out of it if you wanted to: (Thank you! ___ welcome!) (Thank
you! Youre ___!). Over time, youll get a sense for how much information
you can store at once, but to begin, Id suggest that you aim for more,
simpler cards rather than fewer, more complex ones. Nearly every time Ive
had problems remembering a given word or grammar point, its because
Ive made my cards too complex. For languages like Chinese, you may need
3-4 cards to remind you of the spelling, the pronunciation, and the meaning
separately. This saves you time in the long run, because remembering many
easy cards is much easier than remembering fewer di cult ones.
Principle 4: When youre right, youre right

I just told you never to demand multiple answers, but what happens when you try to
learn a synonym?
Multiple equally correct answers

(Synonyms, Production Card)
Both plate and dish are perfectly ne descriptions of this picture. Do you have to
remember bothof them?
Well, no. As long as one of those words comes to mind, youre doing just ne. Youll learn
each word separately through your comprehension cards anyways, so if someone holds a
gun to your head and demands synonyms, youll be ready for him (or her):
Multiple Correct Answers

(Synonyms, Comprehension Cards)
Multiple Correct Answers

(Synonyms, Comprehension Cards)
This approach also works for words with multiple de nitions. A bar is usually for drinks,
but bars of gold and chocolate bars certainly exist. Cards like these arent a problem:
Picture Noun Cards for bar
Picture Noun Cards for bar
But the other direction is trickier.What goes on the back side of this card?
Front side of
bar card
You have two options. You can either put the main de nition on the back side, or you can
put multiple de nitions on the back side (and if you remember any de nition, then mark it
as correct):
Back side of bar, multiple

de nitions
Back side of bar, main de nition

only
Neither approach is better than the other, and I tend to use them interchangeably. In
both cases, youll tend to remember one de nition best, which then becomes the anchor
point for new de nitions. With that anchor in place, its very easy to connect a new
concept to the rst one (Chocolate bars use the same word as normal bars!), and a
single additional card (like card with the single picture of a chocolate bar, above) will be
enough to create that connection, making you an expert in all things bar-related.
Principle 5: Opposites Attract. Dont let them.

Once upon a time, I found a list of antonyms in French and decided to learn them like this:
Bad: Opposites Attract
Bad: Opposites Attract
This was, arguably, one of the worst ideas ever. Weeks later, when I tried to remember
any of these words, I would remember both instead:
Whats the weather like today? Its very hot or cold today.
What did you think about the movie? Why, it was excellent/terrible. It was de nitely one
of the worst/best movies Ive ever seen. The lead actress was so beautiful/ugly, and she
played her part really well/badly.
It took me months to x the damage to my poor French, and I dont know if my French
ever forgave me. Pay close attention when making cards for closely related ideas, and
make them as independent as possible. Your language will thank you. This applies to
thematically related words like stoplight, crosswalk, street and sidewalk and antonyms
like cold/hot:
Good: An independent card for

every concept
Principle 6: Keep it Short
Bad: Question overload
Your brain is quite good at being lazy (and e cient). Over the course of practicing a card,
you will memorize the words closest to the missing word, and youll tend to ignore the
rest of the card. In this case, you will commit to memory the following: in some month
of some year, the spork is the. Unfortunately, this is totally useless. Keep your questions
as simple and direct as possible, and you will be rewarded with robust, useful memories:
Good: Short and sweet
Principle 7: Learn, then memorize
What?
Understand what youre teaching yourself before you memorize it. While there is a place
for uncertainty in foreign language study, memorizing mostly incomprehensible language
isnt the most e ective use of your time. Use examples you can understand, and youll
learn more from them:
Good: Straightforward,
comprehensible examples work
best
Principle 8: Be careful with corrections
Bad: Showing yourself mistakes
This card is concise, clear and comprehensible. Heres the problem: When you read an
incorrect sentence, youre more likely to believe that its correct in the future, even if you
know its incorrect originally. I just made you more likely to say you eats hamburgers in
the future. Now Ive done it twice. Sorry. Known as the Truth E ect, it makes familiar
things more credible than less familiar things, no matter how untrustworthy the
source.Every time you read a mistake like this, youre more likely to do the mistake in the
future, so if you wish to put corrections into your ashcards, do it like this:
Good: Replace mistakes with blanks
If you rearrange mistakes into ll-in-the-blank tests, you eliminate the Truth E ect, and
get an e ective, concise ashcard in the process. You can use this type of card to teach
yourself grammar.
What about when you make a mistake by accident? Youll be making thousands of cards,
which nearly guarantees that youll screw up somewhere:
Unintentional Errors (And thats the

last time with the hamburgers.
Sorry.)
Do whatever you can to avoid this, but if it happens, youll nd that these cards will cause
trouble all the time. Youll have serious trouble remembering erroneous cards for more
than two weeks. This is a good thing. Your brain is very good at picking out
inconsistencies. If you feed it ashcards with con icting information, it will sound an
alarm by preventing you from remembering those ashcards.
If you notice that youre having major di culties memorizing what appear to be easy
cards, double check to make sure that you dont have an unintentional error lurking
somewhere. Either you will nd an error, or your cards are too hard. Thank your brain, x
your cards, and move on with your day.
Thats it! If you have questions and additional suggestions, leave them in the comments!
FILED UNDE R: BLOG, FLASHCARDS, SITE UPDAT E S TAGGE D WI T H: ANKI,
FLASHCARDS, MEMORY, MEMORY T E CHNI QUES, PICTURE S
Gabriel Wyner
I am an author, opera singer and polyglot based in Los Angeles, CA. After reaching uency in
German in 14 weeks with the help of the immersive Middlebury Language Schools, I fell in love
with the process of language learning, going on to spend two months in intensive Italian courses
in Perugia, Italy. Searching for ways to bring the immersion experience into the home, I began to
develop a system that rapidly builds uency in short, daily sessions. In 2010, my e orts paid o . I
learned French to uency in 5 months, and then Russian in 9 months.
Currently learning Hungarian, I am looking forward to Japanese next year. My book, Fluent
Forever: How to learn any language fast and never forget it, was released on August 5, 2014 by
Harmony Books (Penguin Random House). My blog, Fluent-Forever.com, details my methods and
provides resources for learners of all languages.
Comments
Said Aspen says

MAY 14, 2013 AT 3:37 PM
Great stu as always!

I am also a Anki-accro.
Thanks for this!
Reply
Shelly says
JUNE 19, 2016 AT 7:10 AM
I am trying to get the download for the rst chapter as the site directs you to do
but after several attempts I have not received it yet. Any chance anyone out there
can help me.
Also, the program looks complicated. I need something easy so I can get onto it
quickly. Feedback
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ on the ease of the program? 13/41
quickly. Feedback on the ease of the program?

Thanks
Reply
David says
NOVEMBER 16, 2016 AT 5:33 PM
Late response but may help someone in the future:
The system de nitely takes some work up-front. I read straight through the
book and am now returning to it periodically for clari cation. That said, once
you get rolling, I believe it is a very e cient system. It will serve you well for
your current language learning and if you go on to study other languages, you
will have a great system in place right out of the gate.
The more ash cards I make, the better my cards get as I learn what works
best for me. I plan to study more languages in the future, so I see this process
as totally, totally worth the up-front e ort.
You wont have to use it too long to see a payo either: Its much easier to
learn a word o of a picture card youve made yourself than o of a
translation card you downloaded in someone elses deck. Ive been using this
system for just a few months, but already I nd that after just a few reps, the
words are rmly embedded in my memory. In contrast, for my last language I
downloaded a bunch of anki decks that other people made, and found that I
forgot words much more frequently.
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts, David!

~Lauren, Gabes assistant
Reply
Kurt says
MAY 15, 2013 AT 4:49 AM
Awesome post. Im learning

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ French, I just hit 3550 Anki cardsIve been thinking about 14/41
Awesome post. Im learning French, I just hit 3550 Anki cardsIve been thinking about
this exact topic. Really all of my cards only teach pronunciationI could produce the IPA
spelling/pronunciation of all the words I knowI could spell some of them, and some of
them I would struggle to know their meaning if I heard them even though I recognize the
pronunciation.
I used Rosetta Stone at rst, and I think Rosetta does a decent job of teaching you the
meaning/spelling with their various exercises, but now that Im done with level 5, Ive
noticed Im lacking in spelling and listening/reading comprehension in the new words Im
learning.
Im reading Harry Potter in French to learn more wordsIve been including an

abbreviated French dictionary de nition of the word and the Harry Potter sentence
where it came from as the clue, then I pronounce the word. In general, I can remember
the word much easier by using the ll in the blank Harry Potter sentence than the
dictionary de nition. But I noticed what you mentionI read the rst few words of the
dictionary de nition/Harry Potter sentence and then I remember the wordI dont
necessarily need to know what it means or how the connection works.
To know a word is to know:

1. Meaning
2. Pronunciation
3. Spelling
Should there be a 3 cards for every word?
For me it makes sense to group verb conjugations together (je, tu, il/elle/on, nous, vous,
ils/elles) forms etc on one card. I started by doing them separately, but then you end up
with so may cards for one verb that it was time consuming to make them and
aggravating to do them.
Another questionas your vocabulary increases and you want to distinguish between
similar words (lever, soulever, relever), or (enmener, mener, amener) etc it seems this is
impossible without context and dictionary de nitions. Is the solution to force yourself to
read the entire de nition and entire sample sentence without cheatingto visualize it,
etc?
I dont know what to do. I learned to distinguish between similar English word pairs by
being exposed to a lot of English. Over time, the context surrounding the words gives
each word its own meaning or sense. So perhaps the solution is to simply read/hear
enough French in the same way?
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

MAY 15, 2013 AT 4:58 AM
Are you currently doing one card per word? (Basically, a version of the production
cards, above?)
Reply
Reply
Kurt says
JUNE 1, 2013 AT 11:50 PM
Yes. I essentially have 4100 production cards. Their focus is primarily correct
pronunciation. Sometimes, I will see a card, remember how to pronounce the
word, but not remember exactly what the word means.
Ive thought about this for awhile. Right now, I like using only production
cards, but also reading and listening to FrenchIE anki is not my only learning
source. But doing the cards backward might help (hear the sound and see the
word, and I produce the meaning).
This might be why I continue to struggle with frequency list words. Rosetta
Stone/Books+Audio book gives me practice remembering meaning when I
see/hear the word. But since I only have production exposure to frequency
list words, I struggle to remember them.
Reply
Kaylan says
JANUARY 7, 2015 AT 11:47 AM
Cheers pal. I do apripceate the writing.
Reply
Kelli says
JANUARY 6, 2015 AT 2:57 PM
Im out of league here. Too much brain power on dilypas!
Reply
Norm says
At last! Something
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ clear I can undarstend. Thanks! 16/41
At last! Something clear I can undarstend. Thanks!
Reply
Vianca says
Thats not just the best anrswe. Its the bestest answer!
Reply
Zack Flummerfelt says

MAY 18, 2013 AT 8:32 PM
Gabriel,
What an accomplished person and an excellent website. I just bought your IPA English
deck and Im looking forward to your book when it comes out. I wish I would have found
this site and your Lifehacker article last year.
Anyway, I have the sad yet so typical American second language story. I had my two
years of Spanish in high school and two semesters in college. I wasnt a good student and
didnt remember much. Lets go forward about fteen years to spring of last year when I
nally decided to pick up Spanish. In the past year I would say that Ive gotten myself to
a sturdy A2 or a wobbly B1 depending on the assessments Ive taken lately. In any event
my Spanish is not very usable without getting the other person to slow down
considerably, especially on the phone. I had a goal of B2 by the end of 2012 with a C1 by
the end of this year. I was hoping with my current knowledge I could salvage the C1 goal.
With job changes and some family tragedy it hasnt been a steady stream studying the
past year but I should still be further down the road. Ive been using some traditional
methods, courses and so forth. I came across your site while Googling about thinking in a
new language as I was getting concerned about being in a translation rut. Right now I
have to translate everything I hear, or what I can pick up anyway. How would you suggest
migrating to your system when a person is not a beginning from scratch? I live in Kansas
and most of the Spanish speakers are Mexicans or Mexican descendants. My goal is a just
a garden variety educated Mexican accent.
Thanks,
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

MAY 19, 2013 AT 3:07 PM
Hi Zack. Thanks for your kind words! At your level, heres what I suggest:
Jump straight into frequency lists (usually Id do base words -> ~1/2 of a grammar
book - Frequency lists - everything else (reading, the other 1/2 of your grammar
book, movies, lots of speaking practice).
Go through a 1000-2000 word list (links in the language resources section) and
whenever you spot a word you dont know, make 2 ashcards for it using sentences
and pictures from Google Images and a monolingual spanish dictionary.
Alternatively, go through that same list with a tutor on iTalki.com, and discuss every
problem word with that tutor in 100% Spanish until you understand it and can
create an example sentence (and a de nition, potentially). Then make ashcards
from those example sentences.
Reply
Zack Flummerfelt says

MAY 21, 2013 AT 1:53 AM
Gabriel,
Thanks so much for your attention to this and your helpful advice. I think it is
also just a matter of keeping on keeping on. There is a reason why B1 is called
threshold. Until one has reached that level solidly the language doesnt feel
readily useful despite how you may have communicated with anyone.
Ordering a burrito isnt the same as a real conversation. Its about reaching
that moment when dont have to ask someone to slow down when the topic
moves past the weather.
Reply
Tallin says
Its a real plsrueae to nd someone who can think like that
Reply
Rebecca says
At last! Someone who unssertandd! Thanks for posting!
Reply
Mylen says
Cinnte, te1 tionchar aige, ach te1 se9 i bhfad amach; ach is beag tionchar
aige ar lucht mallaithe ar aon nf3s.Feadh mo shaiol, chuir mee1in an tsaoil
mhf3ir sedos ar thrioblf3ided an tuaiscirt mar coimhlint creidimh; agus is
cuimhin liom e9isteacht le Meiricee1nach amhe1in a the1inig chun eadarne1il a
dhe9anamh idir cliarlathas na hEaglaise Caitliced agus seanf3ired na
nEaglaised Phrotastfanach. Dar ndf3igh bhed thiar aige. Ned ansin a bhed
me1thair an oilc
Reply
Loree says
I love these artislec. How many words can a wordsmith smith?
Reply
Rena says
That hits the target peycrftle. Thanks!
Reply
Meirav says
JUNE 5, 2013 AT 7:27 AM
Hi Gabriel!
Sorry, youve lost me!

I came to this page from the Japanese resources one and the post where you discuss how
to make cards for Chinese and Japanese. I like that in this post you have images. I get lost
very easily on lengthy written explanations without them. Excuse me for writing this
without pictures!
I am getting ready to create a card set for vocabulary in Japanese. I want to learn Kanji
right away as well. If I am understanding you correctly, I would make all these separate
cards for say learning nekocat:
1.- Image of cat / audi recording neko

2.- Image of cat / kanji
3.- Kanji / audio recording neko
4.- Kanji / radical components with furigana (reading aid in hiragana)
5.- Kanji / radical components with meaning for each (in images)
6.- Kanji / stroke order
later on.
7.- Image of cat / sample sentence
+ Per this post you suggest images with words are easier to remember so I can write
in hiragana neko instead of english under the picture of the cat.
+ On your example of the production card for un chien, you actually have three di erent
concepts working at the same time. (gender, pronunciation, spelling) this is throwing me
o would it then ve ok to combine di erent functions in one?
Do these all go in one set? Do I study them one right after the other, or are they shu ed
with other cards pertaining to other vocabulary words??
I personally work with images well. If I am trying to recall a word when speaking, I quickly
picture it and it comes to me. THis is without any anki training just the way my brain
works.
Thanks for your advice!
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

JUNE 5, 2013 AT 8:31 AM
Youre bringing up a lot of good points, and as I go through the website and rewrite
everything, Im de nitely going to need to rewrite the Chinese/Japanese section to
be clearer. Thankfully,
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ Im actually going to be learning Japanese in January, so thatll 20/41
be clearer. Thankfully, Im actually going to be learning Japanese in January, so thatll

give me a better sense of the challenges here.
Here are my rst impressions:

Im going on the assumption here that you know the Kana very well. If not, go to
the Alphabet post (http://www.towerofbabel sh.com/how-to-learn-the-alphabet/
) and learn it that way, with examples.
-Heres your card list:

Card 1: Whats the Picture/Furigana/Pronunciation for [Kanji]?
(Kanji on front, furigana/pic/recording on back)
Card 2: Whats the Furigana/Pronunciation for [Picture]?
(Picture alone on front, Furigana/Recording/Kanji on the back)
Card 3: Whats the Kanji for [Picture+Furigana+recording]?
(Furigana+Picture+Recording on front, Kanji on back).
(Only in the beginning; eventually this card will get easy/boring and at that point,
stop making new ones) Card 4: Whats the stroke order for [Kanji]?
(Kanji/pic/recording on front, stroke order on back)
I would use cards to learn the radicals rst, then start learning the words from the
base word list. If you run into radicals that would make awkward pictures (
Power, Finish, End, Literature) then I would simply decide upon pictures to
symbolize them (A clenched st, the nish line of a race, a book). Make some note,
in English or Japanese or whatever that these are radicals, and if youre using an
image that doesnt correspond with the meaning, then personally, Id be ok with
throwing in a translation here [and only here!]. Youre not really learning them for
their meaning as much as youre learning them for their structure, so that youll
recognize them inside of future characters.
Then, for cat, do the same 4 cards.
Yes, youre combining multiple things here in each card (pronunciation, spelling in
kanji, spelling in furigana, stroke order, meaning), but the 4 cards above should
work fairly well to teach you all of those things without being overly di cult. If you
run into di culties with some aspect (say, the furigana), then by all means, add
another card (Recording/Pic on front, furigana on back) to help reinforce it, but you
wont need supplementary cards like that for long. This is mostly trial and error; if
you have too many cards per word, youll nd that they get a bit too easy and are
boring. If you have too few cards, then youll feel frustrated and youll forget each
card constantly.
You wont need your card #7 (Image of cat / sample sentence). Eventually, youll
reuse cat when you want to learn, say, Japaneses equivalent of on: The cat jumps
__ the table. Then just add the blanked-out example sentence to the picture:
Card 1: Whats the Picture+Example Sentence/Furigana/Pronunciation for [Kanji]?

(Kanji on front, furigana/ Picture+Example Sentence/recording on back)
Card 2: Whats the Furigana/Pronunciation for [ Picture+Example Sentence]?
( Picture+Example Sentence alone on front, Furigana/Recording/Kanji on the back)
Card 3: Whats the

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ Kanji for [ Picture+Example Sentence+Furigana+recording]? 21/41
Card 3: Whats the Kanji for [ Picture+Example Sentence+Furigana+recording]?

(Furigana+ Picture+Example Sentence+Recording on front, Kanji on back).
The cards go in one set. Set the review order to Random. Anki does a pretty good
job of making sure you learn all 4 cards on the same day, just interspersed with the
other cards youre learning.
I think thats everything! Thanks for the questions; theyre super helpful for guring
out where I need to clarify a bit more!
Reply
Kacy says
Such an imesvsripe answer! Youve beaten us all with that!
Reply
Dash says
Thanks for stnitrag the ball rolling with this insight.
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

JUNE 5, 2013 AT 8:33 AM
Oh yeah, as you try stu out, keep me updated and feel free to keep asking
questions. I wont get a chance to personally try out Japanese for another 5-6
months. By then, youre going to know precisely what works for you and what
doesnt (and Id love to know your thoughts at that point)
Reply
Meirav says
JUNE 5, 2013 AT 7:09 PM
Hi Gabriel!
Hi Gabriel!
Thank you for your replies and posting this information online. It has
taken me a while to gure out just what my approach should be for learning
I know I am stronger visually, so I start out with the alphabet right o the bat.
That eliminates translations.
One thing I see might not work is card 4 for stroke order. For example cat has
three di erent radicals, so it would take up a lot of space on the card and
maybe way too much information to remember at once. PLus, I think what
will work for me is to actually write it once you learn the general rules for
the order, and start putting them in practice, there is some memory
developed in the hand, kind of like sports.
When I am reviewing the cards, it is enough to get one of the elements

correct? because they are all linked up with the di erent cards, so eventually
they will all be connected in my brain? Or I have to get everything right on
the other side?
We havent even addressed all the di erent meanings and readings of a Kanji
but I think it would be just the same set of cards for each reading right? And
eventually once I got those down, throw in one card that has the kanji on
front with the all di erent onyomi/kunyumi on back?
(hiragana/audio/picture), and also when I start using sentences it can exercise
those di erent meanings (because it depends on context how the character is
read)?
Oh and by the way, Furigana is a reading aid that is used to help read a Kanji
small hiragana letters above/beside the character. Like this
http://tinyurl.com/mdzzark
So complicated. I will start with radicals not all, but a good base. The thing
is I am already learning vocabulary naturally just by being here in Japan. I
actually practice just by going around and naming what I see. As in I see a cat
crossing the street I say neko to myself. Virtual ashcards!
Ill let you know how it goes!
Muchas Gracias
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

JUNE 7, 2013 AT 9:49 AM
Is Furigana always in Hiragana? ManI cant wait to start Japanese.

Anyways, with the cards I listed earlier, every time I say Furigana, I
mean Spelling in Hiragana/Katakana
I think
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ the single stroke order card will be feasible if you start with the 23/41
I think the single stroke order card will be feasible if you start with the
radicals. In fact, I believe one of my readers learning Chinese started
skipping stroke order altogether after a few hundred characters,
because he started to intuit the proper stroke order, even of new
characters. See this link for a simple way to do it:
http://www.nihilist.org.uk
Try out a few options and see which ones work for you.
When reviewing the cards, there are some things I *have* to know, and
some things that would just be nice:
Card 1: Whats the Picture/Kana/Pronunciation for [Kanji]?

(Kanji on front, Kana/pic/recording on back)
MUST KNOW: Picture, pronunciation
(Would be nice: Kana)
Card 2: Whats the Kana/Pronunciation for [Picture]?
(Picture alone on front, Kana/Recording/Kanji on the back)
MUST KNOW: Kana, Pronunciation
(Would be nice: Kanji)
Card 3: Whats the Kanji for [Picture+Kana+recording]?
(Kana+Picture+Recording on front, Kanji on back).
MUST KNOW: Kanji
(Would be nice: Stroke order)
(Only in the beginning; eventually this card will get easy/boring and at
that point, stop making new ones) Card 4: Whats the stroke order for
[Kanji]?
(Kanji/pic/recording on front, stroke order on back)
Additional meanings for a single kanji:

add them in using (only) card #2, above. You COULD try adding in card
#3, too, but it might not be necessary.
Reply
Meirav says
JULY 1, 2013 AT 1:26 AM
HI There Gabryel!
Yes, furigana is mostly in hiragana and smaller type along a kanji.

I have been taking a rest from studying Japanese.
It takes quite a while to gure out what is the best way to learn.
For example, I started with the radicals (bushu), and then it turns
out that not all of them have meaning and not all have
pronunciation. Those radicals that you can nd online by stroke
order what they are giving you is the name of the radical. Which
doesnt help much when combining them. Its kind of like the
alphabet say when you learned Russian, the letters have names
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ but that is not how they are pronounced when strung together to 24/41
but that is not how they are pronounced when strung together to
form words.
At least that is what I am understanding so far
I think this guy gives a good explanation (and entertaining)

http://kanjidamage.com/kanji_facts
I was wondering if you could share a few of your vocabulary cards

so that I can open them in anki and understand how you are
setting them up. Again, I get lost with verbal/written directions,
and I check out after a while of following ankis how to guide. Kind
of like taking apart a machine to understand how it works instead
of following a manual.
Thank you
Meirav says
JULY 1, 2013 AT 2:23 AM
Ah, Gabriel I looked at the French deck, that works.

Also, re: what is nice to know vs. what you must know on the card
really the hiragana is not a must. Because the aim is to learn to
read & write the kanji. I am going to experiment with it: taking it
out, or adding it as furigana smaller type along the kanji if
needed just as an aid. It does help with learning pronunciation of
double vowels or consonants, SO i will see.
Alright! Ill let you know how that goes!
Thank you!
Clarinda says
This free sharing of intfrmaoion seems too good to be true. Like

communism.
Saray says
Thats not just the best anwers. Its the bestest answer!
Reply
Kurt says
JUNE 5, 2013 AT 7:47 AM
I think this is a very fascinating topic. I hope you spend a lot of time on it in your book (I
look forward to it coming out). Ive recently gone back, and I am adding the reverse cards
per your suggestion (I like it). Some of my thoughts in general:
1. Pictures are very memorable, but they need to be good. I have plenty of cards where I
remember the picture and associate it to the word, but Im not really sure what the word
means b/c Im not sure what the picture means. Right now, I have a hard time nding
pictures for abstract words; I dont have a solution. Also, its best to use a very
striking/unique picture whenever possible. Basically the easier a picture is to remember,
the better.
It seems we remember what is most directly linked to the 5 senses easiest. So we

remember what we can see, hear, touch, feel, smell, etc. For our purposes, were left with
sight and hearing (wouldnt it be awesome to nd a way to include smell, touch, taste
with learning a language). If you cant picture the meaning, perhaps the next best thing is
a recording of the de nition or a sentence where its used (the actual word being blank).
Actually Ive had some success with this. Its easier to remember a recorded de nition
then one that I can only read (google translate is great for making these). Of course the
sentence/de nition must be like a good picture, unique and striking. Finding such a
sentence/de nition can be as hard as nding the picture.
Also Ive found I remember a sentence where a word is used much easier than its
de nition.
So:
1. Picture (best)
2. Recording of sentence/de nition
3. Example sentence
I dont include all three in my cards because then they would take to long to go through,
but perhaps every card should have at least one of these?
I have something like 4300 words in French now, so Ive spent many many hours using
Anki. I would love to hear your thoughtsparticularly on picturing abstract words.
Reply
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

JUNE 5, 2013 AT 8:39 AM
Hi Kurt. As soon as I can, I add example sentences. Once Im there, I *always* have a
picture together with an example sentence [with the word blanked out]. That way,
the accuracy of the picture stops being particularly important, because the
combination of words and pictures is much more memorable than either alone.
As soon as I can after that, I add short de nitions, too. (So I have picture + example
sentence + de nition where I used to use only pictures)
I dont go back and change my cards; I just add these elements to new cards.
Yes, the sentences/de nitions must be decent. You wont teach yourself honesty
with __ is good [although, when combined with the right pictures, you can often
get away with it. __ is good with a picture of Abraham Lincoln might actually
work]. But its usually not hard to nd an acceptably good example
sentence/picture combo with Google images.
Reply
Kassie says
Im quite pleased with the inoarmotifn in this one. TY!
Reply
marina Sousa says

JUNE 7, 2013 AT 5:25 AM
Ol,
Boas dicas, obrigada. Queria saber que tipo de ferramentas usam para criar ashcards.
Gosto muito de criar ashcards com ExamTime porque muito fcil, grtis e em
Portugus. http://www.examtime.pt/ ashcards
Parabns
Parabns
Reply
Yusra says
Owning Chanel designer label hgbandas may be a measure which a lovely lovely
lady has fantastic taste in fashions and is no stranger to the latest progress in
fashion. It will not represent ones own, these products of course stand the house of
more durable quality and design neness, with businessmen swearing inside their
lives because hgbandas might easily exist check of your and therefore widespread
start using. The most suitable matter within the manufacturing most typically
associated with Chanel purses and purses, and the stores themselves demand to
pass accurate quality laboratory tests to ensure that however these are suitable for
building up these chicks accessories. Its no surprise that they are at high think not
only by fashion designers and celebrated public gures across the globe, but also
purveyors considered one of durable manufactured goods that respect so many
people of hard wearing fashion and funky chic.
Reply
Simon says
AUGUST 24, 2013 AT 10:51 AM
Its all great as are many of the tips on this website. One thing I dont like though is the
correction idea. Three problems: 1 Even though you are correcting the error, youre still
seeing the incorrect sentence again and again and to some extent committing it to
memory. 2 You will obviously know that the card is about corrections as soon as you see
it so will already be looking for an error which will make it a pointless card. 3 If you make
these cards yourself (which is what you advise) then surely you will know the correct way
to write it anyway otherwise you cant make the card in the rst place.
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

AUGUST 26, 2013 AT 7:57 AM
Hi Simon! I might be wrong, but I think you misread what I wrote about corrections
(which means I probably should re-write it!). I agree with everything youre saying;
you *shouldnt* make correction cards that look like Fix the error: You eats
hamburgers every
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ day, for exactly the reasons you say. Instead, errors are best 28/41
hamburgers every day, for exactly the reasons you say. Instead, errors are best
addressed with ll in the blank cards: You ___ (to eat) hamburgers every day.
Reply
Prue says
Thats a subtle way of thiinnkg about it.
Reply
Graceland says
At last, sonomee comes up with the right answer!
Reply
Dayana says
Thats a creative answer to a di ucilt question
Reply
Rob says
SEPTEMBER 10, 2013 AT 12:24 PM
Hi Gabriel,
As a fellow language and Anki lover I have to say that your site is very refreshing.
Actually, I try to police myself against language learning sites and forums because for me
the language learning process is so fascinating that it can and often does get in the way
of actually learning the language.

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ I decided to make an exception after reading some of 29/41
of actually learning the language. I decided to make an exception after reading some of
your ideas though.
Im curious what your thoughts might be on using animated gifs instead of still images in
Anki cards. I started doing this about a year ago and it does seem to make a di erence.
Have you ever tried that?
Also, any updates on your book?
Reply
Teh says
OCTOBER 5, 2013 AT 5:01 AM
Hi, I am listening to you to create reverse cards from shared deck but it has no audio for
2nd card. What should I do? Thanks.
Reply
Rob says
OCTOBER 28, 2013 AT 5:02 AM
Its too bad youve given up on this site. I really thought (think) you had a lot to o er the
language learning community. Maybe it was a case of pacing. At any rate, I hope you are
well and will one day return to posting on this site again.
Reply
Jeneva says
None can doubt the vectiray of this article.
Reply
Alex says
NOVEMBER 5, 2014 AT 7:55 AM
Hello Gabriel!
Thanks for sharing your experiences with us! I am going to add pictures to as many ANKI
cards as possible now
I just wanted to share di erent experiences with few things which you wrote about in
this post:
1) Principle 3: Keep it Simple I create a card with a group of words sometimes. For
example breakfast, lunch, supper are 1 card in my deck. Learning up to 3 words
together can be bene cial, but only if these build a meaningful phrase or build a closed
group, kind of stick together. I have a feeling that they help each other to stay in my
memory. Remembering any of these words I remember the other two. I had a similar
experience when, together with 3 other people, we were trying to walk through the huge
crowd on a rock festival. We had to go in a chain holding hands. This way no one got lost,
we all pulled each other through it and stayed together.
2) Principle 4: When youre right, youre right actually, sometimes I create a card with
single word on the front and several words on the back, and it helps because I want to
know BOTH words and to know that they mean the same. I usually write a hint in brackets
on the front. For example (Italian):
FRONT: vegetable (2 words)
BACK: ortaggio, verdura
Best Regards!
Alex
Reply
Geri says
I feel saiitfsed after reading that one.
Reply
Kaiden says
This is the perfect way to break down this inramfotion.

Reply
Reply
Bryan Bulte says

APRIL 30, 2015 AT 4:12 AM
Orjust use Beta.prep ash.com
Copy and paste text and it creates ashcards in seconds (multiple choice, true false, or ll
in the blank).
Reply
Park jaeho says

MARCH 20, 2016 AT 10:06 PM
Hello. Can I translate it into Korean?
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

MARCH 28, 2016 AT 1:23 PM
The website can be translated, yes! If you select Korean in the drop-down list on
the top right side, then there will be a checkbox to x the translation.
Thanks
Reply
Park jaeho says

APRIL 3, 2016 AT 8:02 AM
I know. But machine translation is awful. So I think I can translate it manually.
Reply
Mandhir Bhasin says

JUNE 14, 2016 AT 1:20 PM
Brilliant techniques and really practical.
Although I wonder doesnt it waste quite some time drawing or is there any other
alternative to it? Something less tedious maybe?
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

JUNE 15, 2016 AT 2:48 PM
Thanks for your comment, Mandhir. If you mean drawing the pictures on your
ashcards, then, yes, that could be quite tedious. Gabe generally recommends using
Google Images instead.
Reply
David Parker says

JUNE 25, 2016 AT 5:47 PM
I am have two problems.

1st: I am not able to post to the blog to get help.
2nd: I have been using Anki for about a week and it is a wonderful tool. But I am not able
to drag and drop audio les from forvo.com into the recording eld of your model deck:
Minimal Pairs.
It always looks like http://forvo.com/word/acentuamiento/#es
What is happening?
Reply
Jacob says
JULY 24, 2016 AT 9:51 AM
I just bought the 625 word list to start my training in French, do you recommend putting
each of the words from the illustrations in Anki? I know a big part is not translating and
since there are translations

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ on the word list Im not sure how you would like me to study 33/41
since there are translations on the word list Im not sure how you would like me to study
the word list correctly.
Cheers!
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

JULY 24, 2016 AT 1:14 PM
Hi, Jacob! Thanks for your post. Yes, its best to avoid putting English translations on your
cards, but the word list illustrations are just intended to make the word lists look more
awesome. Gabe recommends using Google Images to choose pictures that resonate
with you for putting on the cards. Hope thats helpful!
Reply
Marianne says
Hi Gabriel
Im using word cards to learn basic vocabulary, but wonder if you have any tips for
learning verbs? Are the cards the best way to go with those too? Seems somewhat
onerous to have to make them all up! Thank you.
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

Hi Marianne! Youll want to learn verbs with ashcards, but NOT just ashcards like:
Front: to be (you) = ?
Back: (you) are
Instead youll want example sentences.
Front: You __ driving

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ me crazy! [Picture of someone being annoying] 34/41
Front: You __ driving me crazy! [Picture of someone being annoying]

Back: Are
or
Front: She __ a postal worker (to be) [Picture of postal worker]

Back: is
I talk about those ashcard types over here: http:// uent-

forever.com/gallery/word-form- ashcards/
Youll want a di erent example sentence and a di erent picture for each
conjugation of a given verb *as long as thats the rst time youve encountered that
particular conjugation style*. So if you learn one verb really well, and then you
encounter a second verb thats conjugated in the exact same way, then you dont
need to make a ton of ashcards for that second verb. Maybe just 1 or 2. You can
get example sentences from your grammar book, or from a tutor on italki.com, or by
creating them yourself and getting them proofread over at lang-8.com.
I hope that clears things up!
Best regards
-Gabe
Reply
Rodger says
Gabriel, thank you for having a nice set of words for beginners, but for the intermediate
and advanced levels do you have a guideline to choosing vocabulary and grammar? I
want to avoid picking words that might spark my interest, but never ever gets used.
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

You have a few options for that.
1) Use a frequency dictionary. Grab the top 1000 and then skim through the next
1000-2000 and see which ones cover topics you nd interesting or applicable to the
situations in which youre going to be using your language
2) Grab a thematic
https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ wordlist/book like the Mastering [LANGUAGE] Vocabulary 35/41
2) Grab a thematic wordlist/book like the Mastering [LANGUAGE] Vocabulary

books by Barron. Those will also be high value words, arranged by theme.
3) Start writing about topics you care about, or talking with a tutor about topics
you care about. Every time you run into a word you need, write it down and learn it.
Use one of those or all three. They should serve you pretty well.
Best regards
-Gabe
Reply
Rodger says
I will be using a Leitner Box for new words and other things, but Anki for
radicals and grammar. Still debating on simpli ed vs traditional. I think TBI
makes me a special case for this style of learning because of my challenges
with memory. I would like to keep you informed. My experience may come in
handy while writing one of your future books on this topic.
Thank you,
Rodger
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

Thanks, Rodger!
Reply
Rodger says
It Im making my cards in triplicate to cover di erent aspects of the word, do I then keep
the three together? If so, when I move thirty words from New to level one, Im moving
ninety cards. If Im only moving thirty cards, Im not increasing my vocabulary as quickly as
I want.
I was an Army linguist, but

https://fluentforever.com/createbetterflashcards/ now language will serve me in another way. Its my way of 36/41
I was an Army linguist, but now language will serve me in another way. Its my way of
pushing the limits of my brain injury.
Reply
Gabriel Wyner says

@Rodger:
You can de nitely increase the number of new cards that show up per day, just be
aware that thats going to increase your daily load of reviews later on. Roughly, I
nd that it averages ~30 minutes of reviews a day if youre doing 30 new cards per
day. And my brain runs out of patience if I try to past 60 new cards/day for many
days in a row (but your mileage may vary!).
Regarding whether to keep your cards together or not, I *do* tend to do that (thats
the default behavior of Anki), but you may nd that switching it up a bit makes your
reviews more challenging/interesting. If you keep them together, do make sure to
shu e the cards in Level 1 before reviewing them so that you dont get related
cards immediately after each other.
Best regards
-Gabe
Reply
Rodger says
Im retired, so if my study time hit two hours a day due to the number of
cards, no problem. TBI left me with an inpared memory. I want to show it
whos boss. In the service I kept my Russian pro ciency at straight 3s. My goal
is to master two languages to level 4 or higher. I think level 4 is also known as
a C1, if you are familiar with either system.
Thank you for your response.
Reply
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11/30/2016 8WaystoCreateBetterFlashcards

Tips, tutorials and resources to aid you on your path

8 Ways to Create Better Flashcards

Im an Anki nut. In some sense, I owe three of my

languages to Anki. One of my favorite things about Anki is

its exibility; you can make ashcards in any way you

Once youve created and memorized a lot of ashcards (I

Principle 1: Use Pictures

Principle 1: Use Pictures

But theres a trick.

If you compare your ability to recall a random picture like thisand a

word like Apple, youre going to have amuch easier time

remembering the picture. But what about a picturewith a word?

Studies show that pictures with words are evenmore memorable

sculpture have to do with apples? In the process of wresting with the

combined meaning of a word and a picture, you store both of them

deeply in your memory.

cards without pictures.

Principle 2: More is Better

for a single word. When I tried this in Russian, I stopped forgetting.

with a waggy tail that chases cats?)

front), youre training a di erent ability:

Principle 3: Keep it Simple

Bad: Multiple answers required

Good: Single Answers

very well: seconds. Sweet.

Principle 4: When youre right, youre right

Multiple equally correct answers

Multiple Correct Answers

Multiple Correct Answers

Picture Noun Cards for bar

Picture Noun Cards for bar

Back side of bar, multiple

Back side of bar, main de nition

Principle 5: Opposites Attract. Dont let them.

Bad: Opposites Attract

Bad: Opposites Attract

played her part really well/badly.

Good: An independent card for

Principle 6: Keep it Short

Bad: Question overload

Good: Short and sweet

Principle 7: Learn, then memorize

learn more from them:

Principle 8: Be careful with corrections

Bad: Showing yourself mistakes

Good: Replace mistakes with blanks

Unintentional Errors (And thats the

alarm by preventing you from remembering those ashcards.

your cards, and move on with your day.

FILED UNDE R: BLOG, FLASHCARDS, SITE UPDAT E S TAGGE D WI T H: ANKI,

FLASHCARDS, MEMORY, MEMORY T E CHNI QUES, PICTURE S

learned French to uency in 5 months, and then Russian in 9 months.

Said Aspen says

Great stu as always!

Thanks for this!

quickly. Feedback on the ease of the program?

Late response but may help someone in the future: