anki-synonyms

A simple Anki plugin that allows randomly choosing different options for parts of prompts. This was designed to handle synonyms in a clean way.

Motivation

Consider a total order. What this is does not matter; other names it may have does. What some people call a "total order", others call a "linear order". Though this example is simple, it highlights an important issue - remembering the various synonyms used to describe a concept is necessary for fluency.

As of now, to handle this situation, it is probably suggested to use two flashcards, one with prompt "Total Order" and another with prompt "Linear Order". In some cases though, it'd be nice if the flashcard could choose which term it shows when it shows it. That is, it'd be nice to have a single card and allow Anki to randomly choose to show "Total Order" or "Linear Order".

To do so, we can install this plugin and write the following:

'(Total|Linear) Order

Here, '( is used to indicate the start of a set of choices Anki can display, | is used to separate the different options, and ) is used to indicate the end of the set. The result is either "Total Order" or "Linear Order" at time of prompting.

You can also nest choices if need be:

'('(Logical|Valid) Consequence|Entailment)

will yield either "Logical Consequence", "Valid Consequence", or "Entailment".

Configuration

From "Tools > Add-ons", select the anki-synonyms entry and select "Config" to reveal a dialog with contents:

{
    "CHOICE_TAG": "|",
    "END_TAG": ")",
    "START_TAG": "'("
}

Update these accordingly if the default '(|) set of operators do not mesh with the text in your questions and answers.