How Flash Works

Flash isn't just multiple choice. Each card starts easy and gets harder as you go, until you can recall the answer on your own.

Rounds: from recognizing to remembering

A deck is studied in rounds. To finish a round, you get every card right a number of times in a row: once in round 1, twice in round 2, three times in round 3. A wrong answer starts that card's count over. When every card is done, the deck moves to the next round.

Here's one card, 花 (flower), as it changes from round to round.

花

Press 1-5 to answer

  1. 1tree
  2. 2flower
  3. 3grass
  4. 4to eat
  5. 5red
Round 1: pick the meaning

花

Pick the reading

  1. 1huà
  2. 2hǎo
  3. 3huā
  4. 4huǒ
  5. 5hē
Round 2: pick the reading, then the meaning

花

Type the reading

hua
  1. huā
  2. huà
Round 3: type the reading, then the meaning
  • Multiple choice gets you started. Typing the answer shows you really remember it, not just recognize it. As you type, Flash lists the answers that start with what you've typed, and you pick one. Tone marks can be left out, so "hua" finds both huā and huà.
  • Readings, like pinyin, are only asked for on cards that have them. Other cards skip straight to the meaning.
  • Each round brings more cards into play at once, and the bar at the top of the study page shows how far through the round you are.

Goals: how much to study each day

Each deck has a goal you can change from its study page. There are three kinds:

No goal
Study as much as you like. Flash counts the cards you finish each day.
Daily goal
Pick how many cards to finish each day, and Flash shows your progress toward it.
Target date
Pick a round to finish and a date to finish it by. Flash works out how many cards you need each day to get there. Do extra today, and tomorrow's goal goes down. If you miss the date, Flash asks you to pick a new one.

When you reach a goal, you can:

  • Next Deck: move on to a deck that hasn't reached its goal.
  • Keep Going: study another batch of the same deck.
  • Reset All Goals: shown when every deck is done, to start again on all of them.

The Read tab: words in real texts

Some language decks are built from real texts, like stories or articles. Their study page has a Read tab that shows the text, with each word marked by how well you know it.

我wǒ喜欢xǐhuan红hóng花huā

Words on the Read tab
  • Green words are done for this round
  • Grey words are ones you haven't studied yet
  • A word shows its reading above it until you get it right
  • Tap a word to see what it means. If it's a green word you've forgotten, press Restudy to bring it back when you study.
  • In rounds 1 and 2, words are spaced apart to help you see where each one starts. From round 3, the text reads normally.