People usually go looking for a Quizlet alternative for one of two reasons: Learn and Test are only partly open without a subscription, or flashcards are no longer enough. The second one is easy to see with look forward to. You get the card right every time, then write I look forward to meet you in an email. But to here is a preposition, so it needs the -ing form: look forward to meeting. A flashcard won’t catch that, because it compares your answer with what’s on the card instead of reading your email. LetsWords reads what you write, points out the mistake and explains the correction in your native language. Below, you’ll see a LetsWords session with this expression, followed by four more Quizlet alternatives and what each one checks when you write on your own.
LetsWords: the Quizlet alternative for actually using words
LetsWords is an online English vocabulary trainer that runs in your browser, with nothing to install. The interface is in English, and explanations and feedback on your mistakes come in your native language: Russian, Korean or Vietnamese. You learn each word in context, with a definition and examples of it in use; if you like, you can switch the definitions to English and keep the translation hidden. Then you recall the word yourself and write a sentence with it. LetsWords points out usage and grammar mistakes, suggests a correction and a more precise way to say it, and explains why. Spaced repetition brings the word back in later sessions, and each time you use it in a new situation. Why recognising a word on a card and using it are different skills is covered in detail in our comparison of Anki, Quizlet and LetsWords.
What a session looks like: look forward to
In Quizlet, a written answer is checked against the card. If your set pairs English words with translations in another language, Quizlet expects an exact match by default and forgives only capitalisation and punctuation (Quizlet help on grading options). What you’re training is your memory of what’s written on the card. In LetsWords review, you see the meaning in your native language, recall the English expression and write a sentence with it. Not sure what to write about? The generator suggests an idea in your native language at the difficulty you choose, for example, that you can’t wait to meet your new team on Monday. Your attempt:
I look forward to meet my new team on Monday.
What the feedback shows.
- to meet → to meeting. In look forward to, to is a preposition, as in listen to, not the to that comes before an infinitive. After a preposition, you need a noun or a verb with -ing: look forward to meeting, look forward to the meeting.
- How to say it more naturally. I look forward to… sounds formal; it’s the classic line in a business email. When you’re talking about your plans, I’m looking forward to… is more usual.
The corrected version:
I’m really looking forward to meeting my new team on Monday.
Use it in a new situation. The expression comes back in review, and you write a different sentence with it, such as the closing line of a formal email:
I look forward to hearing from you.
You knew the expression. The mistake only appeared once you used it in a sentence, and the feedback gave you a rule that keeps working: the same to + -ing follows be used to and when it comes to. Lock in the pattern with the free look forward to and get used to exercises.
What you pay for in LetsWords
In LetsWords, you pay for the practice that makes a word usable:
- Feedback on every sentence in your native language. Usage and grammar mistakes, a correction and a better way to phrase it. Choose brief or detailed feedback; it takes your goal into account: an exam or general English.
- Recall and spaced repetition. You have to pull the word from memory and use it again, not just recognise it on a card.
- Ready-made sets and your own words. Words by level, exam and academic vocabulary, collocations, phrasal verbs and idioms. Words you learned in Quizlet or came across at work or in your coursebook go into your own collections: type in the word, and LetsWords fills in the card with a definition, examples and a translation, which you can edit.
- IELTS Writing in the same service. Hundreds of Task 1 and Task 2 prompts, practice on individual criteria and full answers with feedback on all four criteria: IELTS Writing in LetsWords.
You can try the feedback before you pay. Regular vocabulary and IELTS Writing practice is by subscription; the plan and terms are shown before payment.
Try LetsWords feedback on your mistakes
When you sign up, you choose your goal and level, then try a writing exercise with feedback before you pay.
What you can try in LetsWords for free
- Open exercises. The LetsWords exercises cover more than 1,500 expressions in eight sections, from phrasal verbs and idioms to false friends and linking words. Each one has its meaning, examples, a common learner mistake with an explanation and an exercise that checks your answer. On each expression’s page, you can write a sentence with it and get it checked.
- A trial feedback session before you pay. When you sign up for LetsWords, you use a word you’re learning in a sentence and get an explanation of your mistakes. If you’re preparing for IELTS, you can try a Writing criterion exercise or feedback on an answer instead.
That way, you can see how the practice works before you subscribe: you use the word yourself instead of just recognising it on a card.
Other Quizlet alternatives for English
Anki asks you to compare your answer with the card and rate how easily you recalled it. It won’t tell you what’s wrong with a sentence you wrote, so remembering a translation and writing an email without mistakes remain two separate tasks. More in our roundup of Anki alternatives.
Knowt works the same way as Quizlet: the same flashcard sets, with answers checked through multiple choice, true/false or fill-in-the-blank. There’s no way to use a word in a sentence of your own and get your mistakes explained.
Brainscape doesn’t check whether you’ve used a word correctly. In its study mode, you look at the answer on the back of the card and rate yourself from 1 to 5. You can confidently give yourself a 5 for years and still get the preposition wrong. LetsWords finds that kind of mistake in what you write and explains how to fix it.
Memrise trains you to remember words from a list in its vocabulary review. Getting the review right doesn’t show whether you can use the word in an essay. In LetsWords, you write a sentence straight away and get feedback that takes your exam goal into account, then you can carry on in IELTS Writing.
Quizlet alternatives side by side
We’re comparing vocabulary practice: does it check how you use the word you’re learning in a new sentence?
| App | What happens in vocabulary practice | Feedback on mistakes in a sentence you wrote |
|---|---|---|
| LetsWords | you recall the word and use it in a sentence | the mistake, a correction, a more precise phrasing and an explanation in your native language |
| Quizlet | your answer is checked against the card | no, it shows the answer from the card |
| Anki | you compare your answer with the card and rate yourself | no, it doesn’t review mistakes in a sentence |
| Knowt | multiple choice, true/false, fill in the blank | these tasks don’t review a new sentence |
| Brainscape | you rate your own knowledge from 1 to 5 | no check of what you wrote, no explanation of the mistake |
| Memrise | you review words from a list | no feedback on a new sentence in vocabulary review |
Which Quizlet alternative to choose for your goal
You want to understand your mistakes. Choose LetsWords. A flashcard app will show you the right answer. LetsWords reviews the sentence you wrote yourself: what’s wrong with the preposition, the collocation or the form of the word, how to fix it and why, explained in your native language.
You’re preparing for IELTS. Choose LetsWords: you learn exam vocabulary by writing sentences, and the feedback takes your exam goal into account. Once the words start coming together into phrases, move on to Writing in the same service: practice on individual criteria first, then full answers with feedback on all four criteria. For where to start with vocabulary, see our list of IELTS vocabulary by topic.
You want to review words and not forget them. In LetsWords, spaced repetition brings a word back when it’s time to refresh it, and each time you recall it yourself and use it in a new situation. Add the words you learned in Quizlet to your own collection: review and real use happen in the same session.
You want free practice. Open the LetsWords exercises: the common mistake, its explanation and the answer check are free. For example, suggest vs offer and depend on show where translating word for word leads to a mistake. You can also try a LetsWords session before you pay: use a word you’re learning and get feedback on what you wrote.
You want ready-made sets. LetsWords has sets by level, exam and academic vocabulary, collocations and phrasal verbs, all with practice in using the words built in.
You want explanations you fully understand. In LetsWords, the interface is in English, and the feedback on your mistakes comes in your native language: Russian, Korean or Vietnamese. The finer points of prepositions and collocations are much easier to grasp that way. Flashcards taught you to recognise words. Now learn to write and speak with them. In LetsWords, you recall a word, write a sentence with it, and the feedback shows you what to fix and why. Try a LetsWords session with feedback on your mistakes. When you sign up, you answer a few questions about your goal and level, and LetsWords picks the right practice for you; you can try the feedback before you pay.