tisfeng/Raycast-Easydict

Raycast Easydict – Quick word lookup & translation from the Raycast launcher

What it is

• A Raycast extension (and companion macOS app) that lets you look up dictionary entries or translate any piece of text without leaving the keyboard.
• It automatically detects the source language, picks a target language from your preferences, and fetches results from a mix of classic dictionaries (Youdao, Linguee) and modern translation engines (OpenAI, Gemini, DeepL, Google, Bing, Baidu, etc.).

Key capabilities

• One‑click lookup – select text in any app, hit the hot‑key (default Cmd + E) and see definitions, pronunciations, example sentences, and web phrases.
• Instant translation – same workflow translates the selected text, with support for 48+ languages.
• Multiple back‑ends – you can choose from free web services (Linguee, Youdao) and paid AI‑powered translators (OpenAI, Gemini, DeepL, Google, etc.).
• OCR on screenshots – capture a screen region and have the text translated automatically.
• Audio playback – word pronunciations are spoken automatically (English via Youdao/TTS) or on demand with Cmd + S.
• Customizable order – reorder which service’s result appears first, and enable/disable any provider in the preferences.
• Proxy support – route all network calls through the system proxy, useful for services that are blocked in certain regions.
• Cross‑platform – the extension now works on Windows‑compatible Raycast builds as well as macOS.

How to get it

1. Install the Raycast launcher (free at https://www.raycast.com).
2. In Raycast’s store search for Easydict and click Install, or run the manual steps:

   git clone https://github.com/tisfeng/Raycast-Easydict.git && cd Raycast-Easydict
   npm install && npm run dev
   

3. Open Raycast, type Easydict to launch, and optionally set a hot‑key for quick access.

Typical workflow

• Highlight a word or phrase → press the hot‑key → a Raycast panel shows dictionary entries, pronunciation, and translation.
• Press Cmd + M for “Show More Details” to expand the view.
• Use the Arguments feature to pre‑fill text or choose a specific target language.

Why it matters for AI/ML enthusiasts

• It demonstrates how to glue together multiple AI‑powered translation APIs (OpenAI, Gemini) with traditional lexical resources in a seamless UI.
• The extension handles language detection via four remote services (Bing, Baidu, Tencent, Volcano) and falls back to a local detector, showing a practical multi‑service fallback strategy.
• All configuration (API keys, preferred languages, proxy) lives inside Raycast’s settings, making the tool a good example of a user‑friendly AI‑augmented productivity extension.

Related projects

• The standalone macOS app Easydict (https://github.com/tisfeng/Easydict) offers the same features as a native windowed application.
• Inspiration comes from other Raycast extensions like raycast‑Parrot and the Bob translation manager.

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If you find the extension useful, consider starring the repo – the author appreciates the support!