Yomitan
Yomitan lets you hover Japanese text for definitions, readings, and mining. It is a lookup layer, not a curriculum.
Good fit if
- Learners reading websites, ebooks, or subtitle files
- People who want instant lookups without leaving the page
- Anki users who mine sentences
Look elsewhere if
- You are still learning kana
- You want a beginner course
- You need a simple search box more than a hover tool
Yomitan is a browser popup dictionary. Hover a Japanese word and it shows readings, definitions, and related information from dictionaries you install. Immersion-focused lists such as donkuri/japanese-resources treat it as core infrastructure beside Anki.
What job it does
It removes the tab-switching cost of looking up words while you read. With extra setup it can send sentences to Anki.
That makes it a companion to Jisho, not a replacement. Jisho is easier when you already have a word in mind. Yomitan is easier when the word is sitting in a paragraph.
Limits
Yomitan is not a lesson plan. Dictionary installation, settings, and mining templates take time. Beginners who cannot yet scan kana will fight the tool before they get value from it.
How to test it
Install the extension, add one well-known dictionary set, and read a short NHK News Web Easy article. If lookup feels faster than copy-paste search, keep it. If setup ate the session, stay with Jisho until reading volume rises.
Sources checked
Product details can change. These first-party pages were checked Aug 13, 2026.