I use readlang in equal parts reading epubs and other texts in the reader and using the browser extension to read newspapers and other online content.
When looking up words using the browser extension we cannot see if a word already exists on our word list to be given the option adding a context, but rather a new separate record of the word or phrase is created. This results in a bloated databased containing losts of duplicate words given that it takes me so many contact moments (much higher than the often quoted 7 times) in order to memorize words.
I would like to have the same functionality as the reader when using the browser extension or have a utility which merges duplicate entries in the database into one word/phrase with potentially multiple contexts. This also makes use of the reader much better as we can access all info in our readlang word list during reading, instead of just the words or contexts that entered through the reader.
For the record, the extension does add the new context to your existing entry when you look up exactly the same word or phrase, the same way the reader does. I checked your word list and out of 52,253 words there are only 2 exact duplicates (la pedorra and la piedra angular).
What you’re probably seeing is different strings that share a word. For example, 29 of your entries contain brecha: brecha, esta brecha, brecha de género, ensancharon la brecha, esa brecha podría ampliarse and so on. The same applies to different forms of a word (acarrea, acarreaba, acarrear) and article variants (aceras / las aceras).
Readlang deliberately treats each distinct word, form or phrase as a separate item to learn, with its own flashcard and review schedule. So these aren’t duplicates as far as Readlang is concerned, and there isn’t a way to merge them into a single entry.
A couple of things that may help:
In the extension, if it’s the word you want to learn, click just the word (e.g. brecha) rather than selecting the surrounding phrase. The new context is then added to your existing brecha entry, and you’ll see it alongside your other contexts when you click the word in the reader.
To tidy up entries you no longer want, go to your Word List, type the word (e.g. brecha) into the “Lookup word or phrase” box and press Enter. Search finds every entry containing that word, so you can tick the ones you don’t need, click “Actions” and choose “Delete”. They move to your Deleted list, so it’s easy to undo.
You’re right that the extension doesn’t currently support the auto-highlight feature to automatically indicate whether a word is already in your word list. I agree this would be nice to add.