Spaced Repetition: Learn Vocabulary and Beat the Forgetting Curve

Spaced repetition is a review technique that spaces out your practice of new vocabulary over increasing intervals of time rather than in one sitting. You study a set of words, then revisit them after a day, then after a few days, then after a week, and so on. Each successful recall strengthens the memory and lets you wait longer before the next review. The result is that words move from short-term memory into durable long-term memory with far less total effort than repeated cramming.

The method is built on one of the oldest findings in memory science. In 1885 the German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus described the forgetting curve: newly learned information decays rapidly at first, then more slowly, so most of what you learn today is gone within days unless you revisit it. Each review resets and flattens that curve, so the memory decays more slowly the next time. Reviewing just before you would forget is the most efficient point to do it, which is exactly what spaced repetition targets. The second key ingredient is active recall: trying to remember a word from memory before you check the answer is far more powerful than simply rereading it.

The intervals are flexible, so treat the table below as a starting point rather than a fixed rule. The principle that matters is that each gap is longer than the last, and that you recall from memory first before checking the meaning.

You can run several sets on different schedules at once, which is how learners cover a lot of ground quickly. Words that still trip you up after the final review simply re enter an earlier stage of a new cycle until they stick.

Both questions depend on your level. A comfortable starting point is a schedule of roughly 1 day, 3 days, 1 week and 2 weeks between reviews, then adjust once you see how fast you personally forget. On volume, beginners do best with smaller daily sets, while advanced learners can absorb up to around one hundred new words in a single spaced-repetition cycle and still retain them within a month. If a set feels too easy, add more; if you are forgetting most of them, cut the number down.

Paper flashcards work, but making and sorting them is the part most people abandon. Apps automate the scheduling so you only see each card when it is due.

Anki is the reference tool for serious learners: it is free on desktop and built entirely around a spaced-repetition algorithm (the SM-2 algorithm) that decides when each card reappears. Quizlet is the easiest way to start, with a huge library of ready made, community-created card sets sorted by topic. Memrise works similarly, letting you use community decks or build and share your own. Any of the three will apply the method for you; the best one is the one you will open every day.

Spaced repetition works because it fights the forgetting curve: you review each word at widening intervals, recalling it from memory just before it would slip away. Start with gaps of about 1 day, 3 days, 1 week and 2 weeks, keep the sets small at first, always recall before you check, and let an app such as Anki, Quizlet or Memorise handle the timing. Do that and vocabulary moves into long-term memory efficiently. The final step is to use those words with native speakers, which is what a language immersion trip with SPRACHCAFFE is built for.