Listen with purpose
Sentence-level playback keeps practice focused instead of drifting into passive listening.
Dictation training for curious ears
Build listening & spelling all at once
Dictation may be the most efficient way to improve your listening, spelling, reading, and writing — all at once. Word By Word turns that idea into a playful practice loop: listen, type what you hear, check your accuracy, and repeat until the words click.
Currently supports
macOS
iPad
Chapter 04
The Little Rocket
Listen carefully, then type the sentence you hear.
the rocket glowed...
92%
:)
Tap play.
Hear it again.
Win the sentence.
repeat
check
Type what you hear
The typing area turns every pass into active recall, not just recognition.
Improve by repeating
Replay, check, and retry until spelling, listening, and reading reinforce each other.
The signature feature
Your mistakes become your next lesson.
Focus Drill notices the words you keep misspelling, selects your most persistent weak spots, and weaves them into a fresh, coherent story for you to practise. Your errors stop being a score on a page and become the material for your next workout.
01Dictate normally and real mistakes accumulated automatically.
02Focus Drill turns your top weak words into a story.
03Listen, type, repeat — tricky words cleared in a fun way!
Your tricky words
environment
necessary
opportunity
→
A new drill
The Unexpected Opportunity
Listen to a story that naturally uses the words you need most.
listen · type · improveBuilt in from day one
A real library to start with.
Word By Word includes 1,209 original listening and reading practice exercises across 13 learning tracks — from English A1 and Cambridge-style A2–C2 practice to IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, GRE, Spanish and SELE materials.
1,209built-in exercises
13learning tracks
4core skills in the loop
What is inside?
Sentence-level listening, dictation-friendly transcripts, short dialogues, monologues, interviews, academic talks, articles and exam-informed reading practice.
Important: Built-in materials are original Word By Word practice content informed by the listed levels, genres and exam formats. Word By Word is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an official preparation provider for Cambridge English, IELTS, ETS, College Board, Instituto Cervantes or any other exam owner. Exam names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. The library does not reproduce official questions, answer keys or test papers unless specifically identified.
Bring your own material
My Import turns any text into a practice session.
Have an article, a class handout, a work email or a page you want to study? Paste it into My Import, save it under your own books and episodes, then listen, follow the transcript and practise it sentence by sentence.
- Paste up to 1,000 characters per episode.
- Edit, preview and save your own raw text.
- Organise custom books and episode titles.
- No level system and no AI rewriting — your text stays yours.
Made for focused practice
A tiny learning loop with big compounding gains.
Choose a story or passage and play one sentence at a comfortable speed. In conversations, different roles can speak with different voices.
Write exactly what you heard. No guessing games, no clutter.
Compare your answer, spot what changed, and replay tricky lines.
Strongly recommended
Save Word By Word to your Home Screen.
Word By Word is built for macOS and iPad today. Installing it as a web app gives you a cleaner, faster, more focused experience than keeping it buried in a browser tab.
iPad: Add to Home Screen
- Open Word By Word in Safari on your iPad.
- Tap the Share button in Safari.
- Choose Add to Home Screen.
- Tap Add, then launch from the new icon.
macOS: Add to Dock
- Open Word By Word in Safari on your Mac.
- Use File > Add to Dock, or the install icon in the address bar.
- Confirm the name Word By Word.
- Launch from Dock whenever practice starts.
Why it matters:
Home Screen / Dock launch removes browser clutter, keeps practice one tap away, and makes the app feel purpose-built.
Before you start
What to know today.
Does it work on phones or Android?
Not yet. The current product focus is macOS and iPad so the practice experience can stay stable and polished.
Do I need to install anything from an app store?
No. Open the web app in Safari, then save it to your Home Screen or Dock for the recommended experience.
What is the main learning method?
Short dictation loops: listen to a sentence, type it, check your result, and repeat the lines that need attention.
Can I practise with my own text?
Yes. My Import lets you create books and episodes, paste up to 1,000 characters per episode, and listen and practise against the text you brought in.
Ready when you are