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Features

ClueLens is a browser extension for language learners and translation-heavy workflows. It focuses on fast, flexible, and configurable lookup across multiple sources.

Multi-source lookup

ClueLens currently integrates 18 language sources in three categories:

CategorySourcesCount
DictionaryBing Dictionary, Green's Dictionary of Slang, Jisho, DictionaryAPI, Zdic, Moegirl, Wiktionary, Urban Dictionary, Open Multilingual Wordnet, DWDS, Cambridge Dictionary, SpanishDict, Larousse13
TranslatorGoogle Translate, Bing Translate, Caiyun, DeepLx4
AIOpenAI with compatible APIs or local models1

All enabled sources are queried in parallel, and the results are rendered in sequence. You can enable or disable any source, review the language badges it supports, and reorder enabled sources with drag and drop.

Most web-backed sources also include an Open source page action directly in the result card. DictionaryAPI, Caiyun, DeepLx, and OpenAI are the main exceptions.

For the full source list, see Dictionaries & Translators.

Automatic language detection

ClueLens includes lightweight language detection for the following languages:

  • Chinese, Japanese, Korean
  • English, French, Spanish, German

When enabled, ClueLens filters out incompatible sources automatically. For example, when the input text is Chinese, English-only sources are skipped.

You can turn this on or off in Settings -> General.

TTS pronunciation

You can listen to pronunciation directly from the lookup results. ClueLens supports two voice engines:

EngineDescriptionStrength
Web Speech APIBrowser built-in speech synthesisOffline, fast, and multilingual
LingvaOnline voice serviceMore natural pronunciation, requires network

You can also configure:

  • Auto preload audio to fetch audio in advance
  • Auto play to start playback automatically when results appear
  • TTS service to switch between Web Speech API and Lingva when auto play is enabled

These controls live in Settings -> Audio.

Vocabulary

ClueLens includes a built-in vocabulary list to help you collect unfamiliar words:

  • Save words directly from the lookup panel
  • Each record stores the word, source dictionary, and saved time
  • Review, search, and reopen saved items in Settings -> Vocabulary
  • Export the vocabulary list as JSON or CSV

Material Design 3 theming

The UI uses Google Material Design 3 dynamic color generation:

  • Theme seed color to generate a full palette from one color
  • Dark mode toggle
  • Hue to rotate the main theme color quickly
  • Chroma controls saturation
  • Tone controls brightness
  • Custom fonts with preset or Google Fonts families
  • CDN switching between Google Fonts and the SJTU mirror

The generated palette applies to the inline panel, popup, and side panel.

Settings backup and restore

ClueLens can export all settings as a JSON file. This is useful for:

  • Moving your setup between devices
  • Restoring after reinstalling the browser
  • Sharing a preferred configuration with other users

The export includes general settings, enabled sources and ordering, and per-source API configuration. The backup also includes theme and font settings, vocabulary, and supported per-source configuration data.

See Settings -> Backup and Restore for details.

Context menu

Right-click any web page to access the ClueLens menu item:

  • Open Side Panel to switch into side-panel mode quickly

Keyboard shortcuts

ClueLens can also be opened with browser extension shortcuts. Configure them in your browser:

  • Chrome: chrome://extensions/shortcuts
  • Edge: edge://extensions/shortcuts
  • Firefox: about:addons -> gear icon -> Manage Extension Shortcuts

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