Why I built WortGo

The 60-entry problem

While learning German I hit two problems that no streak counter could fix.

The first was data entry. Each textbook chapter meant typing about 20 words, and each word needed two or three translations. That is roughly 60 entries per chapter before any review started. At first it was manageable. By the third chapter it was the work I did instead of learning.

Cards that were technically correct and still useless

The second problem was the card itself. A German word is not a string with one English gloss attached. I wanted the article, the plural, the root, at least two example sentences, synonyms, antonyms, an image, and — if it was a verb — conjugations plus the preposition and case it actually takes.

Without that, review trained recognition of a lemma and almost nothing I could produce in class.

Volume beat willpower

Once the vocabulary piled up, reviewing every word every day stopped being realistic. I needed something that brought a word back just before I forgot it. I tried about twenty apps. None of them met all three criteria at once.

So I built my own. At first it ran locally on my computer and I used it in class. My instructor asked how I was keeping so many words. After seeing it, they asked if the rest of the class could use it. That is why it went online.

What users asked for next

People started using it and sending feedback. One request was to learn stubborn words inside stories, not only as isolated cards. Another was practice for the Mündliche Prüfung. Written-exam tools are everywhere. Oral-exam practice tools are still rare.

WortGo is still in beta. It is a free German flashcard web app for A1–C1 recall, not an official exam certificate.

Related

• What an enriched German card contains
• How review timing works
• telc A1 oral exam practice guide
• WortGo home

Frequently Asked Questions