Doomscroll your way to fluency.
VerbSurf turns short YouTube videos into language lessons. Every clip shows two captions: the language you're learning, with your own language underneath, in sync with the video.
The scroll habit you already have, working for you.
No lessons to schedule and no streak anxiety. Just watch real videos in two languages at once.
Pick your two languages
Tell VerbSurf what you speak and what you're learning. Right now that's English ⇄ Chinese — more pairs are on the way.
Scroll real videos
Swipe through short YouTube videos made by real people. Every clip plays with two caption lines: the language you're learning on top, your own language underneath.
Tap any word
Don't know a word? Tap it for a quick translation and pronunciation, then keep scrolling. You pick up vocabulary without breaking the flow.
Everything you need to learn from real videos, nothing else.
Dual captions, in sync
Both lines follow the video frame by frame, including when you switch to fullscreen, skip ahead or move to the next clip.
Tap-to-translate
A lookup card shows the meaning in context and the pronunciation, without leaving the video.
Hear it spoken
Play any looked-up word aloud with natural text-to-speech so you learn how it sounds as well as what it means.
Real content, not textbook dialogues
Vlogs, food, travel, comedy: the language people actually speak, with slang and fast speech included.
Captions your way
Turn dual captions on or off and adjust the text size. Your settings stay on your device.
Private by design
No account and no ad tracking. We only process what's needed to translate the words you look up.
Lots of real language, always in context.
You learn a language by understanding lots of it. Short videos give you a steady stream of real speech, and the second caption line makes it understandable while you're still a beginner.
Made for your phone, also on your laptop.
VerbSurf for iPhone & Android
The full experience: a vertical feed of short videos with dual captions, tap-to-translate and pronunciation.
- Shorts and regular videos
- Works in fullscreen
- Caption toggle and text size saved on your device
VerbSurf for Chrome
A browser extension that adds dual captions to videos on youtube.com, for when you're watching on a bigger screen.
- Runs only on youtube.com
- Watch pages, theater mode and fullscreen
- Quick toggle and size slider in the popup
Starting with English ⇄ Chinese.
More language pairs are coming. Vote for yours on the waitlist form.
Questions, answered.
What is VerbSurf?
VerbSurf is a language-learning app built on short-form video. You scroll YouTube videos the way you normally would, but every clip shows two caption lines: one in the language you're learning and one in your native language.
Which languages are supported?
At launch: English ⇄ Chinese (Simplified). Japanese, Korean and Spanish are next. Tell us what you want to learn on the waitlist form and we'll use that to decide the order.
Is VerbSurf free?
Yes, it's free during early access. If we ever add paid features, we'll announce them clearly in advance.
Is VerbSurf made by YouTube or Google?
No. VerbSurf is an independent app that uses YouTube API Services. It isn't affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by YouTube or Google. By using VerbSurf you agree to the YouTube Terms of Service.
Do I need a YouTube or VerbSurf account?
No. VerbSurf works without signing in, and we don't ask for access to your YouTube or Google account.
What if a video has no captions in my target language?
VerbSurf uses captions uploaded by the creator when they exist and falls back to YouTube's automatic translations. If a video has no captions at all, the app shows a short “No captions” notice and you can swipe to the next one.
What data do you collect?
Very little. There are no accounts. Settings stay on your device, and the words you look up are sent to our translation service. Our Privacy Policy explains everything, including how to delete your data.
When can I try it?
The Android and iOS apps and the Chrome extension are in private testing. Join the waitlist and we'll email you once when they're ready.
Be first on the wave.
Join the waitlist and we'll send you one email when VerbSurf is available for iPhone, Android and Chrome. Early members also help decide which languages we add next.
Your email is only used for the launch announcement. See how we handle waitlist data.