Read anything in the language you're learning, with help on every word

Spark turns any article, book or YouTube video into a reading lesson. Tap a word for its meaning in that sentence. Turn the page, and the words you didn't tap count as known.

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Domingos con la abuelaPage 1 of 6

Cada domingo, mi abuela se levantaba
de madrugadamadrugadanounthe early hours, before dawnIn this sentencegot up before dawndawnearly morningSaved with its sentence para preparar el café.
La cocina olía a canela y pan tostado,
y nadie se atrevía a hablar antes
de la primera taza.

17 languagesSpanish, French, Japanese and 14 more
1-click importAny article, PDF or YouTube video
Instant meaningsTap a word to see what it means in that sentence
El mercado del domingo8 words marked known

El mercado abre temprano. Los vendedores
colocan las frutas en cajas de madera
y gritan los precios. Huele a mango,
a cilantro y a pan recién hecho.

Page 3 of 8Next page

Do I have to mark every word I know?

No. Turn the page and every word you didn't tap is marked known. You only touch the words you're unsure of.

What if I know the words but not the sentence?

Select it and ask Explain: the grammar, the meaning, a simpler version, or an answer to your own question, right on the page.

Ayer se me olvidó llamar a mi hermana.

Explain“se me olvidó”
GrammarMeaningSimplifyAsk your own question
“It slipped my mind.”Spanish treats forgetting as something that happens to you. se marks it as an accident, and me says who it happened to.
Tacos de pescado en 10 minutosCCMientras tanto, picamos la cebolla y el cilantro.
0:12Hoy vamos a preparar unos tacos de pescado.
0:16Primero, marinamos el pescado con limón.
0:21Mientras tanto, picamos la cebolla y el cilantro.
0:27Al final, calentamos las tortillas en el comal.

Can I read along with a YouTube video?

Yes. Save it with the Spark Chrome extension and its captions become a transcript that follows the video, with every word tappable.

How to learn Spanish with YouTube

Where do the good phrases go?

Highlight them, add a note and a tag, and find them all on your Notes page with the sentence and source attached.

La cocina olía a canela, y nadie se atrevía a hablar antes de la primera taza.

Your notenobody dared to speak#familiaFrom: Domingos con la abuela
Notes 24nadie se atrevía a hablarnobody dared to speak · #familiaechar de menosto miss someone · #familiaa fuego lentoon a low heat · #cocina

The Spark reader at a glance

What you can readWeb articles, PDFs, EPUBs, YouTube videos, audio and video files, pasted text
How words are markedNew, Unknown (learning) and Known, shown in color as you read
Word look-ups a monthFree 500 · Core 4,000 · Plus 7,000
Works onAny modern browser, on a phone, tablet or computer
Languages17 to learn, with meanings in 74 native languages

Questions about reading in Spark

What is the Spark reader?

Where you read in Spark. Every article, book or video opens as pages, with each word colored by how well you know it. Tap a word for its meaning; the rest count as known when you turn the page.

Does Spark translate whole sentences?

Yes. Select a phrase or sentence to see its translation. A single word gets the meaning that fits the sentence it is in.

Is the reader free?

Yes. The free plan includes the reader with 500 word look-ups a month. Core and Plus raise that limit.

Which languages can I read in?

Spanish, French, Italian, German, Portuguese and English are the most developed. Dutch, Polish, Swedish, Turkish, Japanese, Arabic, Hindi, Korean, Russian, Ukrainian and Chinese are also available.

Can I read on my phone?

Yes, in your phone's browser. Swipe to turn pages and long-press to select several words.

Keep going

Bring in what you want to readArticles, PDFs, EPUBs and YouTube, in one click.Make the words stickReview cards built from the sentences you read.Talk about what you readChat at your level, using the words you just met.

Read what you'd read anyway. In the language you're learning.

Start with three short pieces picked for your topics and level.

Start free

7-day free trial. No card.