Many people learned either French or Spanish in school. Some people do take German in college.

As a result many people have never seen a German dictionary. But there are many of these online that can help translate words and phrases from German to English and back.

One German dictionary many people know is a translator such as Google's or Yahoo Babelfish. These don't just have one language, they have many. They can translate from one to the other. They can translate your webpages if necessary. It's fun to use. Google seems to be the better one.

However another German dictionary translates two ways at the same time. Type in an English word to see alternate English words and the German equivalents. Let's give it a whirl.

Typing nothing into this type of German dictionary brings up a number of English phrases. One of these is nothing doing. This is like saying oh no you don't. It's an emphatic way to say no. It could also mean you don't agree to something. For instance the salesman wanted to pour dirt on my rug, I kicked him out saying nothing doing. It's nichts zu machen in German. The phrase is closer to no chance. The German word nichts means nothing.

Kleinluftschiff in this German dictionary is blimp. It can also be a zeppelin. Airships of this type often float over football games. The Hindenburg was a famous airship. In 1937 the Hindenburg caught fire. It was a total loss. 35 of the 97 people on board were killed. One news clip of the disaster is well known. It included the reporter yelling “oh the humanity!” This footage can still be found today. Look it up on YouTube.

Nobody knows for certain why the Hindenburg started burning. It won't be found in a German dictionary. It may have been sabotage. Static might have built up to the point that the Hydrogen was combusted. It might have been lightning. Hydrogen in such airships was stored safely. But the hydrogen mixes with oxygen when vented out during a landing. Only then could it explode. One article had a theory. The author postulated that perhaps the engine exhaust caused sparks which then ignited. The results were horrific.

A German dictionary can lead to a lot of knowledge.