Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary

Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary

Highlights rare English dictionary words and idioms on web pages. Facilitates English language learning and expands your vocabulary.

What is Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary?
Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary is a unique Chrome extension, designed to aid English language learners. While browsing the internet, users see highlighted rare words, idioms, and proverbs, and can learn their definition in the provided context. The extension is free, open-source and operates offline as well. Users have the ability to customize the extension's behavior by adjusting the highlighting frequency and exclude or include specific websites.
Stats
Users: 10,000+
Rating: 4.60 (123)
Version: 2.12.3 (Last updated: 2020-07-28)
Creation date: 2020-05-23
Risk impact: Low risk impact
Risk likelihood: Low risk likelihood
Manifest version: 2
Permissions:
  • storage
  • unlimitedStorage
  • contextMenus
  • tts
  • identity
Size: 745.47K
URLs: Website
Stats date:

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Summary
Analyze keywords

Word Discoverer highlights rare English dictionary words, idioms and proverbs on web pages. It helps non-native English learners to discover new expressions while they are browsing the Internet. Highlighting of rare words is useful because some people do not even notice vaguely known words, especially when these words are not critical for understanding of the text that they read. One possible explanation of this strange and pertexing effect is that mind of a reader is concentrated on understanding the meaning and structure of the text, and after finishing reading a sentence many readers won't go back to check the meaning of unfamiliar words that they have already forgot. E.g. some readers will forget to check the definition of word "pertexing" from the previous sentence which, in fact, doesn't exist. And even if you did check it, you still can try this extension, it highlights only real English dictionary words and idioms =)

NOTE On installation Words Discoverer shows scary warning that it can "read and change all you data on the websites your visit" - don't worry, Words Discoverer will not send any of your data anywhere. In fact it doesn't even talk to any servers, all highlighting logic is performed locally in your browser, so if you have some saved html files to read, you can even use Words Discoverer offline. The source code is here if you are curious: https://github.com/mechatroner/aided_reading

Words Discoverer is free forever, open source, and it has no ads.

Here are some features of the extension:

Words Discoverer is better than "Word-of-the-day" type of programs because new words are highlighted in context of the text that you read, which is a good motivating factor to finally check the definitions and learn these words (or idioms).

Depending on your vocabulary size, you can adjust frequency threshold of highlighted words e.g. skip 25% most common English words, and highlight all the rest. There's no way to set such threshold for idioms and proverbs, the extension can either highlight all of them or none.

Words Discoverer can operate in two modes:

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User reviews
User reviews summary
These summaries are automatically generated weekly using AI based on recent user reviews. Chrome Web Store does not verify user reviews, so some user reviews may be inaccurate, spammy, or outdated.
Pros
  • Useful for teaching English
  • Easy to use
  • Handy
Cons
  • Sync error with Microsoft Edge
  • Lack of unifying account for cross-device word saving
  • Difficulty in customizing settings for different needs
Most mentioned
  • Sync error with Microsoft Edge
  • Useful for teaching English
  • Easy to use
  • Handy
Recent reviews
by Cynthia Elliott Cynthia Elliott, 2024-01-18

Extremely useful but I really wish it can open the dictionaries links in a small pop up window instead of a new tab.
by Hoang-Phuc Tran Hoang-Phuc Tran, 2024-03-15

handy easy to master not complicated
by Alireza Sadeghi Alireza Sadeghi, 2024-01-22
View all user reviews
Safety
Risk impact

Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary is relatively safe to use as it requires very minimum permissions.

Risk likelihood

Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary has earned a fairly good reputation and likely can be trusted.

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Screenshots
Promo images
Word Discoverer: Expand your vocabulary small promo image
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