Most people glance at their phone dozens of times a day. What if each glance showed you a Japanese word?
Kanjijo’s lock screen and home screen widgets turn those idle moments into passive learning opportunities - no app opening required.
How Lock Screen Widgets Work
After installing Kanjijo, add the widget to your lock screen (iOS 16+):
- Long-press your lock screen → tap “Customize”
- Add Kanjijo widget to the widget area
- A new Kanji or Vocabulary word appears automatically
- Tap it to open the full flashcard with readings and pronunciation
The widget refreshes throughout the day, showing different items from your current JLPT level. You see kanji, readings, and meanings at a glance.
Home Screen Widget: Even More Context
The home screen widget is larger and shows more detail:
- The kanji character with its primary meaning
- On’yomi and Kun’yomi readings
- One example vocabulary word
- Tap to jump directly into the lesson
Available in small, medium, and large sizes to fit your home screen layout.
Why Passive Learning Works
Passive learning (also called “incidental learning”) is well-researched in language acquisition:
- Spaced exposure: Seeing a word multiple times across the day creates natural spaced repetition
- Low cognitive load: A quick glance requires minimal mental effort, making it sustainable
- Contextual triggers: You start associating kanji with moments in your day
- Habit formation: No discipline required - it’s just there every time you check your phone
Combining Active + Passive Learning
The magic formula for maximum retention:
- Morning: Do your SRS reviews in Kanjijo (10-15 min active study)
- Throughout the day: Glance at lock screen widget (passive exposure)
- Evening: Study new lessons or practice writing (10-15 min active study)
This gives you 30 minutes active + dozens of passive exposures daily - more than enough to make consistent progress through JLPT levels.
Widget + OCR: The Ultimate Combo
See an interesting word on your widget? Curious about something in the real world? Use OCR to scan it, save it, and it might show up on your widget later. Everything connects.
Go Deeper on Passive Learning
If the lock screen approach suits you, the same idea extends to the rest of the phone. The guide to turning your whole phone into a Japanese immersion environment covers language settings, keyboards and apps.
What You Actually Get Inside Kanjijo
Kanjijo is one app that covers every part of Japanese, so you are not stitching together five tools. Here is the full list, as of 2026:
Everything in one app · free to start
- Complete kanji, vocabulary and grammar for all five JLPT levels — N5 through N1, in a fixed order with no gaps.
- Exclusive mnemonics written by hand for every kanji and every vocabulary word — not auto-generated, not borrowed from a public deck.
- SRS reviews that schedule each item right before you would forget it, so 10–15 minutes a day is enough.
- OCR camera scanner — point your phone at a menu, sign, manga panel or receipt and Kanjijo reads the Japanese and turns the words into cards.
- Lock screen widget — a new kanji or word every time you pick up your phone.
- Home screen widget — today’s review count and study item, visible without opening anything.
- Interactive test widget — answer a real question straight from the home screen, no app launch needed.
- JLPT reading practice — graded passages with the exact question types the real exam uses.
- JLPT listening practice — native audio exercises per level, including the trap-heavy formats.
- Full JLPT mock exams — timed, section-scored, so you know your weak section before test day.
- Conversation lessons — natural dialogues with every grammar point actually used in context, not bolted on.
- Shadowing — speak along with native audio and hear yourself against the model.
- Dictation — listen to real everyday Japanese and rebuild the sentence word by word.
- Learn from a video — paste a link to any Japanese video and Kanjijo turns what is spoken in it into a lesson: every sentence split into separate words, furigana on the kanji, and the grammar patterns named.
Lock screen, home screen and the interactive test widget - synced to your SRS reviews, with an exclusive mnemonic behind every kanji and word. Free with Kanjijo on iOS.