Clozemaster is a popular language app that uses gamification to make learning fun but is it actually any good for learning Japanese? The app is made by Betten and is available on both Apple and Android.
Overall, yes Clozemaster is a pretty good system for reviewing grammar points but it’s not going to be suitable for every level of Japanese student. The game is certainly addictive and offers a wide range of content but it can be a bit repetitive.
There are many language choices in the app so I was skeptical that it would be specifically useful with Japanese. Lots of interesting points to get through, so let’s dive right in!
Wtf is a cloze?
A cloze test is basically a fill in the blanks question. It’s useful for improving and testing your language skills as it relies on your ability to figure out answers by context.
Example:
Question: Today I put on my hat and went for a _______ in the sunshine.
Answer: walk
Cloze test are useful tools because they require you to read the sentence, understand it’s full meaning and decide the word that fits. This is a great judge of your grammar understanding. Questions like these are often used on official language tests so it’s in your best interests to study them well.
The downside of cloze tests is the dreaded synonym. The example above seems like an easy one but it’s a bit misleading because there could actually be several correct answers. I might have gone for a walk, a stroll, a run, a hike etc. All of those answers are technically correct but there is usually only one “correct” answer when you’re using an app.
How is the Clozemaster app to use?
Clozemaster is basically an endless stream of cloze tests. The app itself is no frills and while there is a lot of text there aren’t too many options to fiddle with.
Free to play
You can use the app completely free and without an account but if you want to save your progress or score you will need to sign up to a free account. Once you have an account, you are able to do as many cloze tests as you like. The main restriction of the free account is that you are only able to do 1 listening test per day. The other restriction is that you must have an internet connection to play.
Clozemaster Pro Upgrade
There is an option of subscribing for a paid account. You can’t do this in the app, you will need to head to their website to sign up/upgrade. A pro account currently costs US$8 a month or US$60 per year.
The pro account allows you to play unlimited listening rounds, revise your favourites offline, customise how you want to do reviews, google translate within the app and some other little features.
For a casual user the Pro upgrade is not really worth the cost. For a heavy user, the extra features are nice but the main benefit is being able to play more listening rounds and support the app developer.
How to play
To play a round you select your language, difficulty and then either multiple choice or text input. If you select text inp
ut you will get double the points as it’s more difficult. There is an option for the standard questions or Cloze-Listening during which the question is spoken before the text is shown.
The questions are provided in rounds of 10 and you select or type in the word that is missing in the example sentence.
You are scored for correct answers, streaks and reviews. You can then favourite the sentences you like, review previous tests or start the next set of clozes. The web version of the app also seems to have some features such as creating your own cloze collections (still in beta testing).
The difficulties are ranked by the most to least common words used in Japanese. According to the app there are a total of 176,282 sentences in the Japanese section with the “Fluency Fast Track” course having 32,232 words to master.
What level of Japanese do I need to use Clozemaster?
The app’s about page says that Clozemaster is aimed at people looking for what to do once they finish Duolingo. I think that’s a pretty fair way to describe the levels.
To play even the easiest levels of Clozemaster you will need to have a good grasp of kana and kanji. There is no romaji option that I have found.
I recommend waiting until you have learned the JLPT N5 level of kanji before you start playing or you will find yourself frustrated trying to read. There is an option to show the English translations before or after answering but you really do need a basic reading level to get far.
For context, I tried the beginner level with very little kanji knowledge and was getting around 60% correct. After reaching to level 9 in Wanikani I have a 100% success rate on the easiest cloze level.
Is Clozemaster’s content good for Japanese?
The concern I always have with apps that offer lots of languages is that they often aren’t particularly focused on any of them. Clozemaster’s content comes from Tatoeba which is a massive and open source translation library. The best part about it is that anyone can add content, the worst part about it is that anyone can add content. While the majority of the translations are good there are definitely some errors and sentences that sound a bit weird.
The other thing to point out is that the voices used in the listening options are computer generated via text to speech programs. They sound good but the technology isn’t quite as natural as a real native speaker. Picture an audio book read by Siri vs a voice actor.
Is Clozemaster actually fun to use?
Yes, it can get quite addictive because there is an international leader board. It’s extremely motivating to see yourself climbing the ranks! Of course it would take real commitment to get close to the top. As I’m writing this, the top score in Japanese is 116,756 and I’m at…. 3172nd for this week. Hah!
It’s also motivating to work you way up from doing multiple choice questions to typing. While it’s not easy to jump directly into typing as there are so many possible synonyms, you can use them for reviews once you know the pool of word options.
Is it useful for self study?
It can be very difficult to get decent grammar practice in when you’re self studying. There are plenty of kanji apps for revisions but unless you want to use Anki, there are fewer easy options for grammar.
Clozemaster is great for self study because, so long as you have an internet connection, it’s always available. The questions being in groups of 10 makes it very easy to get a few rounds in between projects during the day. If you want to commit to a longer study session there is an endless stream of revisions.
It’s also very useful to have an option to type in the answers as it will help you revise your kanji skills.
The best parts of Clozemaster
- The sheer amount of content, there are thousands of questions, sentences and words to learn.
- It’s a quick light weight app.
- The leader board… I will get to the top one day!!
- More advanced questions – lots of apps stop after N5 content, this has enough questions to last you well past N1.
Where does the app need improvement?
- The design is very blocky and plain. It looks like it was aiming for pixel art but mixes it in with some odd design choices. I’m not a fan and would prefer something easier on the eyes for long sessions.
- Content is sometimes a bit awkward sounding.
- More features would be great including options for those still learning kana or kanji
Is Clozemaster worth trying?
If you have a solid grasp of basic kanji and are looking to improve your Japanese grammar knowledge I absolutely recommend trying out Clozemaster. You will need to know the fundamentals but the app is a fantastic way to test yourself and further your practice. The content will grow with you as you progress to advanced Japanese, so it’s a great app to keep in your revision arsenal.
If you need to brush up on your grammar before you jump into cloze tests then check out my review on Mirai Japanese.
