Answer modes and review sets
How you answer, which words you review, and which side of a card you see first are three separate choices. Understanding each one makes it easier to choose a review.
On this page
Answer modes
Self rating, Typed answer, and Multiple choice on the deck screen control how you answer.
- Self rating: Recall the answer, reveal the back (or the front when reviewing back → front), then rate whether you remembered it.
- Typed answer: Type your answer and check it.
- Multiple choice: Choose an answer from the options.
Review sets
The review set determines which words appear. Select “Start review” on the deck screen to open “Choose a review”, then choose a set. During a review, you can change it from “Choose review scope”.
- Scheduled review (“Start today’s review”): Includes words due today according to FSRS, along with new words.
- Random review: Practice a number of randomly selected words that you choose.
- Review all words: Practice every word in the deck.
- Review only new words: Review only words you have not studied yet.
- Review recent material: Practice the words from the last session you completed in that deck.
- Review incorrect answers: Practice only the words you answered incorrectly in the last completed session.
“Review recent material” and “Review incorrect answers” appear only if you have completed a session in that deck today. “Review incorrect answers” also requires at least one incorrect answer in that session. Sessions are recorded separately for each direction. You can also choose “Review incorrect answers” on the results screen when that session contains incorrect answers.
Practice and scheduled reviews
Random review, Review all words, Review recent material, and Review incorrect answers are practice. Answering in these sessions does not change FSRS progress. Review only new words, however, is recorded as a regular review and advances FSRS progress.
Answers given in “Review incorrect answers” are excluded from accuracy statistics. Retrying a word does not change the accuracy recorded when you answered it incorrectly. These answers do count toward total correct answers and your study streak.
Card direction (front → back or back → front)
Use “Review direction” on the deck screen to choose front → back, where you see the front and answer with the back, or back → front, where you see the back and answer with the front. All three answer modes support both directions. Autoplay on the deck screen also follows the selected direction and reads the back first for back → front.
Back → front has its own FSRS review schedule and daily new card limit, separate from front → back. Study statistics such as accuracy and your streak combine both directions. “Today’s review” on the home screen and the “N cards today” counts in deck lists on the home and folder screens include back → front cards only for decks where you have graded at least one card in a regular back → front review. The “N cards today” count beside “Start review” on the deck screen is for the currently selected direction.
Hints are hidden in back → front reviews. Hints are often written to help recall the back from the front and could give away the answer when the direction is reversed.
For typed answers in back → front reviews, the front of another card in the same deck with the same back is also accepted: it may be another word with the same meaning. Multiple choice also excludes other valid answers from the incorrect options. If your device automatically changes an apostrophe to “’”, your answer may be marked incorrect. In that case, use “Mark correct due to typo”.
Keyboard shortcuts on a computer
The following keys work on the review screen. On computers with a mouse or trackpad, a shortcut list also appears at the bottom of the screen. Shortcuts are unavailable while a confirmation screen, “Choose review scope”, or “Edit” is open.
- Self rating: Press Space or Enter for “Show back” (“Show front” in back → front reviews), 1 for “Forgot”, and 2 for “Remembered”.
- Typed answer: Press Enter to submit. After a correct answer, press Enter again for “Next”. After an incorrect answer, press 1 to continue with it marked incorrect, or 2 to mark it correct as a typo.
- Multiple choice: Press 1–4 to choose an option, then Space or Enter for “Next”.