Learn Japanese
Japanese Flashcards for Kanji, Vocab, and JLPT
Kanji are the wall. Ellie generates cards with readings, meanings, and mnemonics — plus vocabulary mining from the anime, manga, and novels you actually read.
Japanese uses three scripts: hiragana (46 phonetic characters), katakana (46 more, mostly for loanwords), and kanji (about 2,136 in general use, with several thousand more in literature). The FSI classifies Japanese as Category IV — the hardest tier for English speakers, roughly 2,200 classroom hours to professional working proficiency. Most of that time goes to kanji.
Ellie handles the two hardest parts: kanji drilling with the Heisig method or radical-based mnemonics, and vocabulary mining from real content (anime subtitles, manga, novels). Combined with JLPT-aligned decks (N5 through N1), it is the same workflow Refold and Migaku teach — automated.
The three scripts, in order
Learn hiragana first (one week of daily practice). Then katakana (another week). Then start kanji alongside vocabulary. Trying to learn kanji before hiragana is backwards; hiragana is the phonetic foundation.
Kanji strategies — pick one
There are three mainstream approaches. Pick one and commit; mixing wastes time.
- Heisig (Remembering the Kanji): learn meaning + writing first, then readings later. Structured but delays reading practice.
- Radical-based with mnemonics (WaniKani-style): learn radicals, then kanji built from them. Faster to reading practice.
- Vocabulary-first: learn kanji through the words that contain them. Most natural but requires patience with early opacity.
JLPT levels
The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test has five levels (N5 easiest, N1 hardest). Ellie ships pre-built decks aligned to each level's kanji and vocabulary lists.
- N5: ~100 kanji, ~800 vocabulary, basic grammar
- N4: ~300 kanji, ~1,500 vocabulary
- N3: ~650 kanji, ~3,700 vocabulary
- N2: ~1,000 kanji, ~6,000 vocabulary
- N1: ~2,000 kanji, ~10,000 vocabulary
Frequently asked questions
How long does N5 take?
3–6 months of consistent daily practice (30–60 minutes/day). Faster with intensive study; longer if inconsistent.
Do I really need to learn all 2,136 kanji?
For adult reading fluency, yes. For basic conversation and reading manga with furigana (phonetic guides), N3 (~650 kanji) is a workable milestone.
Is WaniKani worth it?
For many learners, yes — the radical-based mnemonics are effective. Ellie can complement WaniKani by handling vocabulary mining from content, which WaniKani does not do.
Can I mine from anime subtitles?
Yes. Paste subtitles, Ellie extracts unknown words with the sentence as context. This is the Refold / Migaku workflow, automated.
How is this different from Anki + Core 6k deck?
Anki + Core 6k works, but you have to make mining cards by hand. Ellie automates the mining side and can export back to Anki .apkg so you keep your existing setup.
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