Language Trainer Cards

Flashcard-style vocabulary trainer for Obsidian, for any language. It turns your own markdown notes — one note per word — into a study deck with mastery tracking, and works in both directions: forward (word → translation) and reverse (translation → word), with independent progress for each.

Screenshots

Card front	Card flipped (answer + example)

Vocabulary folder in the vault	A word note

Features

• Flashcard-style learning interface
• Two directions with independent grading: forward (word → translation, recognition) and reverse (translation → word, recall)
• Mastery tracking with pools: New (0–2★), Learning (3–4★), Mastered (5★+), and an Archive
• Progress persistence across sessions and devices (stored in the vault)
• Cross-platform support (desktop and mobile)
• Keyboard shortcuts for efficient studying
• Add vocabulary word command that scaffolds a correctly-formatted word note
• Works with any language — just point it at a folder of word notes

Installation

1. Copy main.js, manifest.json, and styles.css to your vault's .obsidian/plugins/language-trainer-cards/ directory
2. Reload Obsidian
3. Enable the plugin in Settings → Community plugins
4. Set the vocabulary folder in the plugin settings (default: Italian)
5. Run the command Open trainer — forward (word → translation) or Open trainer — reverse (translation → word) to start

Vocabulary folder

The plugin reads every markdown file in the configured folder as one word. Files and folders whose names start with _ are ignored, so you can keep indexes and reference notes next to the words (e.g. Italian/_meta/Index.md).

Optional: organizing with a _meta folder

A useful convention is a _meta folder inside the vocabulary folder:

• Inbox.md — a running dump of new words and phrases you encounter.
• Index.md — a generated list of all words for browsing and review. It lives under _meta, so it never becomes a flashcard.
• Pronunciation.md — your language's pronunciation rules (IPA and respelling conventions). Word pages can link to its sections, so each rule is explained once, in one place.

A typical workflow with the Inbox

While reading or listening, dump everything new into Inbox.md as quick bullets — words, phrases, even grammar questions. Later, ask your AI agent to "process the inbox": with the add-word skill installed, the agent turns each item into a properly formatted word page (new words get pages, phrases with their own meaning get phrase pages, questions get answered on the relevant page), keeps synonym/phrase links two-way, and clears the processed items from the inbox. No agent? The Add vocabulary word command and the template cover the same ground by hand.

Creating words

Each word is a markdown note. Use the Add vocabulary word command to fill a form and create the note, or write the file by hand (see templates/word-template.md).

If you use an AI agent to manage your notes, the repo also ships an add-word skill that teaches the agent the page layout and linking conventions.

The plugin reads these blocks from a note:

The full template (templates/word-template.md):

### <translation in your language>
#<part of speech: verb, noun, adjective, adverb, pronoun, …>


> [!info] Pronunciation
> /<IPA>/ · <RE-spel-ling>


> [!example] Example
> **<Sentence in the studied language.>**
> *<Sentence in your language.>*


> [!abstract]- Forms
> |  | <form 1> | <form 2> | <form 3> |
> | --- | --- | --- | --- |
> | <person/number/gender> |  |  |  |


> [!quote] Phrases
> [[<phrase containing this word>]]


> [!tip] Synonyms
> [[<word>]] · [[<word>]]


> [!note] Notes
> - <grammar, irregularities, usage notes>

What the card reads from it:

• File name (minus .md) → the word on the card.
• ### line → the translation shown on the back. Required for reverse mode.
• Pronunciation callout → /IPA/ · Respelling on one line (optional).
• Example callout → a bold sentence in the studied language, then an italic translation (optional; fold markers like [!example]- are fine).
• Synonyms callout → [[wiki links]] joined with · (optional; shown in reverse mode, where they act as alternative answers).
• First #tag line → part of speech hint (replace the #<part of speech…> placeholder with a real tag like #verb or #noun).

Everything else — Forms tables, Phrases links, Notes, any free text — is for you; the card ignores it, so keep whatever you like in your word files.

Usage

• Click the prompt word or press Space to flip the card.
• The grade buttons adapt to the pool being studied:
  • New (0–2★): Don't know (−1★), Kind of (+1★), Know (→3★), Too easy (→5★ mastered)
  • Learning (3–4★): Don't know, Kind of, Too easy
  • Mastered (5★): Keep / Skip, Don't know (back to Learning), Archive (hide everywhere)
  • Archived: Know (keep archived), Don't know (release back to New at 0★)
• Number keys 1–4 trigger the visible buttons; K = Know, D = Don't know where offered.
• Press R or the ⇄ button to switch direction; each direction has its own mastery progress.
• Press N on the completion screen to start a new set.
• Progress is saved automatically.

Data Storage

Mastery data is stored in language-trainer-progress.json in your vault root, so it syncs across devices via Obsidian Sync or other sync methods.

License

MIT