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Look up Japanese words anywhere

meikipop uses optical character recognition (OCR) to read text from websites, games, scanned manga, or even hard-coded video subtitles. Just point your mouse and press a hotkey for instant dictionary lookups - or enable auto-scan mode and skip the hotkey entirely. If you can see Japanese text on your screen, you can look it up with meikipop.

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Key features

Works everywhere

No more limitations of browser extensions or application-specific tools. If it’s on your screen, you can look it up.

OCR-powered

Reads Japanese text directly from images, perfect for games, comics, and videos. Pluggable backend system supports Google Lens, owocr, and custom providers.

Blazingly fast

Pre-processed JMdict dictionary optimized for instant lookups. Lightweight, responsive UI designed for seamless reading.

Highly customizable

Change hotkeys, themes, colors, and layout. Configure scan regions, auto-scan intervals, and display preferences to match your workflow.

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What meikipop is (and isn’t)

meikipop is designed to do one thing exceptionally well: provide fast, frictionless, on-screen dictionary lookups. Inspired by the philosophy of Nazeka (a browser-based popup dictionary) and the OCR architecture of owocr, meikipop brings that seamless experience to your entire desktop.
Not an SRS mining tool: meikipop doesn’t create flashcards for Anki or similar programs.Not a multi-dictionary tool: The lookup logic is highly optimized for JMdict’s structure and tags.

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Quick start

Installation

Download prepackaged binaries for Windows and Linux, or run from source on any platform.

Quickstart guide

Get from zero to your first lookup in minutes.

Configuration

Customize hotkeys, themes, scan modes, and more through the settings GUI.

OCR backends

Choose between Google Lens, owocr, or create your own custom OCR provider.

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Platform support

  • Windows: Full support with prepackaged binaries
  • Linux (X11): Full support with prepackaged binaries
  • macOS: Beta support (run from source)
macOS support is in beta. The tray icon and settings menu may not display consistently. You can configure meikipop through config.ini if the GUI doesn’t appear.

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Philosophy

meikipop maintains a focused scope to deliver an exceptional experience:
  • One thing, done well: Fast, frictionless lookups without feature bloat
  • Universal compatibility: Works with any content visible on your screen
  • Optimized for speed: Pre-processed dictionary and lightweight architecture
  • Seamless workflow: Minimal interruption to your reading or gaming experience
Ready to get started? Head to the installation guide to set up meikipop.

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