On Reddit (r/languagelearning), one reader said a few words stopped them in every article, and they were the same words from the week before. They had looked one of them up more than six times.
Five Steps That Help a Word Stay
- Keep the SentenceSave the whole line where you found the word, so you remember how it was used.
- Read It Somewhere NewMeet the word again in a different sentence, about a different topic.
- Hear ItListen to the word in a sentence, so you know it by sound as well as by sight.
- Use ItSay or write your own sentence with the word, or use it in a chat.
- Come Back Before You ForgetSee the word again just before you'd forget it, then again after a longer wait.
Flashcard apps handle the last step with a schedule that spreads each word's reviews further apart as you remember it.
Bring Words Back in New Lessons
In Bubblegum, Poppy, your AI tutor, writes lessons at your level. When a word you saved is due, she works it into a new lesson where it fits, so you read it in a new sentence. Bubblegum calls this Regenerative Review™.
Bubblegum
Bubblegum is the best app for serious learners. You learn from text and audio you can mostly understand, which is called comprehensible input.
- Tap a word while you read and save it with its sentence.
- Save words from a photo of your notes, too.
- Ask Poppy about a word, or use it in a chat with her.
- Saved words can go into an Anki deck whenever you want one.
- Clear, expressive AI voices read every lesson aloud, with a different voice for each speaker.
- Bubblegum can't help you read a book or article you found yourself.
- A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn.
- Regenerative Review™
Mobile
For more ways to bring words back, see flashcard alternatives for language learning.
Common Questions
Why do I keep forgetting words I've looked up?
Looking a word up shows you what it means, and you need to meet it again to keep it. How to learn new words while reading shows how to save words without stopping the story.
Should I learn words from a list?
A list is fine for picking words. Each word is easier to keep once you've also read it in a sentence.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- r/languagelearning: There's a word I've looked up 6+ times and STILL can't remember it. What do you do?
- Anki Manual: Deck options (reviews spread out as you remember a card)
- Bubblegum
Checked on October 16, 2026 against each app's own pages.
