Toki Pona has a small set of words, so a vocabulary tool mostly differs in three ways: where the words come from, how you review them, and whether you can practice the sitelen pona glyphs. Some tools hand you the words, and others only give you a place to write your own cards. This page compares eight tools on those points. For every way to learn, see our Toki Pona apps comparison, and for reading, see our Toki Pona comprehensible input apps.
Bubblegum
For serious learners, Bubblegum is the best app to learn Toki Pona. You learn from Toki Pona you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
Tell Poppy, your AI tutor, your level and what you like, and she writes your Toki Pona lessons. If a sentence is hard to follow, ask Poppy to explain it.
With Regenerative Review™, words you save show up again in new lessons, so you review them in new contexts without flashcards.
- Toki Pona lessons are written at your level, with English explanations.
- Words you save come back inside new lessons, so you see them in new sentences.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- The audio comes from the read-aloud voices, and Bubblegum plays no shows or videos.
- Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
Clozemaster
Clozemaster is a fit when you know a few words and want to see them in whole sentences.
- Toki Pona has its own sentence lists with English translations, and you fill in the missing word.
- Spaced review brings sentences back, so each word returns in context.
MobileWeb
Other Apps We Looked At (6)
- kama sonaAn iPhone app with a dictionary that has audio and example sentences. Spaced repetition brings missed words back sooner, you can drill in both directions, and a glyph mode covers sitelen pona.
- Toki TrainerAn iPhone app with a Toki Pona dictionary and a flashcard plan, described in English.
- Learn Toki PonaAn iPhone app with flashcards of beginner Toki Pona words, described in English.
- nasin sona musiA browser game with timed word recall, a dictionary to explore, and practice in both the Latin letters and sitelen pona. Word audio is credited to jan Lakuse.
- AnkiFlashcards you write yourself, with scheduled review. It is free on desktop and Android, and the iPhone app costs a one-time payment. You write your own cards or import shared decks, and it does not come with a Toki Pona course.
- QuizletYou write term and definition sets, or study sets other people made. Basic flashcards are free, and some study modes need Plus.
| Tool | Words Come From | Review | Sitelen Pona |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bubblegum | Lessons Poppy writes | Saved words return in new lessons | – |
| Clozemaster | Sentence lists | Spaced sentence review | – |
| kama sona | The built-in dictionary | Spaced repetition, both directions | Glyph mode |
| Toki Trainer | The built-in dictionary | Flashcard plan | – |
| Learn Toki Pona | Beginner word cards | Flashcards | – |
| nasin sona musi | Words from the book lessons | Timed recall in a browser game | Glyph sets |
| Anki | Cards you write or import | Scheduled review | Your own cards |
| Quizlet | Sets you write or choose | Flashcards | Your own sets |
A dash means no information is listed for that feature. nasin sona musi runs in a browser.
Which Toki Pona vocabulary app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Toki Pona, start with Bubblegum. Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level about things you like. To drill the words as cards, add kama sona, which brings missed words back sooner and has audio for each word.
Which tool helps me practice sitelen pona?
kama sona has a glyph mode, and nasin sona musi has sitelen pona sets. Anki and Quizlet can show glyphs on cards or sets you make or import, but neither comes with a sitelen pona course.
Do I need to make my own cards?
Anki and Quizlet work with cards or sets you write, or ones other people shared, so the words and meanings depend on what you add. kama sona, Toki Trainer, Learn Toki Pona and Clozemaster give you words to study.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. Lessons Poppy wrote for other learners are free for everyone to read. Custom lessons cost us money to make, so you need Bubblegum Pro for unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- Clozemaster: Toki Pona sentence lists
- Clozemaster: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- kama sona: iPhone App Store listing
- Toki Trainer: iPhone App Store listing
- Learn Toki Pona: iPhone App Store listing
- nasin sona musi: itch.io page
- Anki: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Quizlet: iPhone App Store listing (languages you can use it in)
- Bubblegum
- Clozemaster
