Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
Cloze deletion flashcards: how to write fill-in-the-blank cards
Use cloze syntax to hide one key term in a sentence, avoid hiding too much and decide when a cloze suits better than a question.
What a cloze card is
A cloze card shows a sentence with a part hidden. You recall the hidden part. It suits facts that live naturally inside a sentence: dates, names, terms and parts of a formula.
In Anki and Ronri you write the sentence once and wrap the hidden part in double braces: {{c1::Canberra}} is the capital of Australia. Each numbered cloze becomes its own card.
Numbering creates separate cards
Use c1, c2 and so on to make separate cards from one sentence. “{{c1::Water}} boils at {{c2::100}} °C at sea level” creates two cards, each hiding one part.
Using the same number twice hides both parts on one card. That is useful only when the parts must be recalled together, such as a pair of terms.
Avoid two common mistakes
Hiding too much leaves a sentence with no clue: “{{c1::The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840}}” is just a question with no prompt. Hiding an obvious word tests grammar rather than knowledge.
Hide the one key term the sentence is about, and keep enough of the sentence to make the answer unique.
Cloze or question?
Use a cloze when the fact is clearest in context, such as a definition or a step in a process. Use an ordinary question when you need to explain, compare or apply something.
Language learners often combine them: a cloze for the word in an example sentence, plus a basic card for its meaning.
Try it yourself
Write a cloze for: “The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840.” Hide only the year.
Show the answer and explanation
The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in {{c1::1840}}.
Hiding just the year leaves enough context for a single correct answer.