Dev tools · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to I made a crossword app for language learners
Hi HN! In the last couple of weeks I've been working on Cranki: Cranki = Crosswords + Anki. (It's a stupid name tbh, haha) I like doing crosswords in Spanish (to learn vocab) but none of the apps out there allowed me to use my own list of words that I come across. So I built one instead. It's entirely client-side. No server, no database, no accounts, etc. Your words and stats are stored in local storage. I built this for myself but let me know if you like it!
Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes.
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I initially released this as just an IOS app. Since then it has been growing steadily but a lot of people have emailed asking for a web / android version. It took me nearly 2 months to build a version for the web. The nice thing about using Convex as my backend is that all the data is always synced between the app and web. I do not have to setup any syncing logic. The moment you change something in the app, it will reflect on the web version in realtime. I know there are loads of these kind of tools online but it's starting to feel like mine is actually starting to differentiate itself…
2025 · three-cells.com · its alternatives →
- 3T
I made a simple, easy to use transcription app which is free! Thanks everyone for giving it a go!
2024 · transcripto.xyz · its alternatives →
- 4TA
Hello HN, Introducing VocabGenii.com, my online vocabulary game. It is the first product from my company, Genii, Inc., that brings innovative, engaging new learning experience to the market by leveraging web 2.0 and social networks. Currently, we are running a 10K Challenge -- anyone scoring 10,000 points before the contest ends (March 24 04:00 GMT) will get 3-Month unlimited play. Exceptional performance would also be recognized in our 10K Hall of Fame with limited edition trophies! We're hiring! If you have disruptive ideas on language learning and online education, and possess…
2011 · vocabgenii.com; · its alternatives →
- 5
Hey HN! Halfway through moving to Canada and whilst my conversational French gets me by, I'm absolutely rubbish when someone rattles off phone numbers at full speed (quatre-vingt-dix-neuf anyone?). So I built a virtual pet that thrives on correctly answered number challenges. 20-second drills throughout the day: get them right and Lexie grows, get them wrong and it gets a bit sad (but never dies, this isn't the 90s). Speak, type, or tap your answers. Would love any feedback/bugreports. Or just rant about how the Belgians sensibly say "nonante-neuf" whilst we're stuck with…
2025 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →
- 6
Well HN, I've finally produced something I think is worthy of sharing, but I didn't do it "in a weekend". Yeah, it's an iOS puzzle game. And yeah, it's a game I built because I wanted to play it rather than based on market research, so all this sort of makes it the antithesis of a popular HN post. But whatever. Still hoping for some of that patented (har har) expert HN feedback. Critique any part of it except the music. Also, PM me for upgrade codes, or I can post some here if there's any interest. Download (it's free):…
2012 · itunes.apple.com · its alternatives →
- 7FA
Made this app because I was tired of not knowing 50 words/book when I read in English. You can try it on the AppStore searching "Quicky app". For Android user please use the web mobile version at https://quicky.app/. The Desktop version has a shitty responsive design. IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are not French, you will want to tell you are to try the features of the app (sorry it's only in French though) I'd love to hear your feedback.
2019 · its alternatives →
- 8
Hey hey! This is a tool I've worked on for a while, and it's reached the point I'm quite happy with the results! Comments and suggestions are appreciated :) Enjoy your day!
2023 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 9SY
Hi HN, I built Lengpal, a simple language exchange platform where two people get instantly matched on video to practice their native and target languages. There’s a timer built in so both sides get equal time to speak. I created this because I wanted something beyond passive apps like Duolingo. Something to actually speak with real people without the hassle of scheduling or chat fatigue. Right now we are testing the concept with a waitlist. We’ve collected 77 emails so far from Reddit and IndieHackers. I would love your feedback before launching the MVP. Site:…
2025 · its alternatives →
- 10WS
This is the first project I haven't written a single line of code. The entire codebase was prompt generated in Cursor using mostly Claude Sonnet 4.5. It's also the first time I'm genuinely happy with the end result from AI coding. What do you think?
Dec 2025 · wordsnake.co · its alternatives →
- 11E
Hello everyone, A couple of months ago I was introduced to Excalidraw and fell in love with it instantly. The only thing I didn't like was that I couldn't easily save my whiteboards and had to put everything in one whiteboard which started to lag my PC after a while. So I made ExcaliHub. It's exactly as it sounds: a hub for Excalidraw. It's free, open source, and I aim to keep it that way. Thanks in advance for any feedback!
2024 · excalihub.dev · its alternatives →
- 12
English is my second language. From my experience, I learnt that developing your vocabulary is a long and arduous process. Traditionally, learners used flashcards (or their digital incarnations). I wanted to build something more engaging and more effective in building your vocabulary. DictionaryGames is aimed mostly at ESL (English as a Second Language) students, but I am hoping it might be fun for any English language lovers. The project is in BETA, it is free, and no registration is required. I am looking for feedback to improve it. If you comment, please indicate if you are a native…
2025 · dictionarygames.io · its alternatives →
- 13MP
My first "real" web app! I appreciate any comments/suggestions.<p>Also I am available for hire. Contact me at www.sambolgert.com
2012 · se.cret.ly · its alternatives →
- 14IM
Hey there HN, I took a page from Wordle's mechanisms and made this game for fun for some friends and I. Check out Wheredle and let me know what you think of it! ↙ ↗ ↘ https://wheredle.xyz
2022 · wheredle.xyz · its alternatives →
- 15IB
It's like a mix between Picross (Nonograms) and Polyominoes. It's a minimalist puzzler which has no text, no tutorials (none required) and no ads set in a relaxing environment. App Store: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/shapeuku-shape-puzzle-game/i... Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dtbgames.s... I have a bulk load of Android promo codes to give away, so if you'd like one let me know! (Sorry iOS users, I have no free codes left!)
2018 · its alternatives →
- 16
Lexio▲2Beautiful Spanish stories for language learners
Jun 2026 · lexiolanguage.com · its alternatives →
- 17MN
This is an idea I’ve been kicking around for a long time, and I decided to finally code it up. In the same way that Scrabble decomposes words into letters, what if there was a game that decomposed letters into sub-shapes? There’s a lot of directions this could go, and I’m still exploring the possibility space. Enjoy. Suggestions welcome. It doesn’t have a real name yet.
2024 · shovemedia.com · its alternatives →
- 18
I haven't seen anything like this so I decided to build it in a weekend. How it works: You see a bunch of things pulled from Wikipedia displayed on cards. You ask yes or no questions to figure out which card is the secret article. The AI model has access to the image and wiki text and it's own knowledge to answer your question. Happy to have my credits burned for the day but I'll probably have to make this paid at some point so enjoy. I found it's not easy to get cheap+fast+good responses but the tech is getting there. Most of the prompts are running through Groq infra or hitting a cache…
Apr 2026 · sleuththetruth.com · its alternatives →
- 19IM
Hi, Sometimes I want to wrap an existing website into an Android app quickly so I made a service that does just that https://html2apk.com/ If you find it useful I'll be happy to hear about that, if you have any other comments/suggestions I'll be happy to hear about that too. 10x, Gilad
2019 · its alternatives →
- 20AL
Hi HN, I have been studying languages as a hobby for a large portion of my life. Hence, I decided to create a spaced repetion app with the techniques that have helped me the most so far. It's aims to be made simple for the regular user to plug and play. I'd love to hear your feedback!
2025 · koshka.app · its alternatives →
- 21
Howdy HN. I wanted an excuse to do some lightweight JS/TS development and to get reacquainted with the Cloudflare stack, so I put together a daily word game. It's partially inspired by NYT's Spelling Bee and Wordle. The main goal is to find a specific word each day that uses each provided letter at least once. There's a secondary goal of finding as many words as possible. Right now progress is all stored on-device, but in the future I might add leaderboards or other competitive elements. Hope y'all enjoy!
2025 · wotd.is · its alternatives →
- 22IM
Try it at: ssh krnl.duetbrowser.com No sign up, totally free - no download. Let me know what you think. Prior art exists (brow.sh) but I wasn't satisfied with their graphical take. I wanted the raw, old skool terminal days of the early internet - BBS, and old green phosphor library comptuers - but running the modern web, with all the bells and jingle jangle whistles (JavaScript, etc). No funding, no VC, just 100% raw terminal fun. Not sure how long the demo will last, but try it out.
Jul 2026 · its alternatives →
- 23AD
Hi guys, This is my first time building something from scratch so go easy on me. I've always used to-do lists to keep me productive and stave off anxiety (not sure why they work so well for me but they do). I get kinda annoyed at the to-do list apps on the app stores because they move tasks to the bottom of the list when you tick them off. Some people may like that, but it annoys the shit out of me, because I like to feel a sense of progression as I go down through the list over the course of the day. So this was borne out of my frustration really. I also made it browser-based so it's easy…
2022 · anotherdarntodo.com · its alternatives →
- 24
My friend and I have been working on this word game as a side project for about six months, and we’re excited to finally share it beyond our family and friends! The idea came from a simple game my friend used to play with his kids during long car rides — just using their heads and maybe a pencil and paper. He had such fond memories of it that we decided to bring it to life as a proper game. We’d love for you to try it out and let us know what you think! PS This is my first real frontend-heavy project, and clean code was not my priority, so I'm sure there is considerable room for improvement…
Feb 2026 · subletters.fun · its alternatives →
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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →