In August 2025, a rumor spread online that the language learning app Duolingo apologized for calling "Harry Potter" author JK Rowling "mean" in a German lesson.
The claim spread on X, Reddit and Facebook.
Duolingo did, in fact, apologize in an Aug. 20, 2025, X post (archived) for calling Rowling "mean" in a possible answer for a question in a German lesson in the app. Thus, we rate this claim true.
"We apologise for any offence caused and will remove this content from the app," Duolingo said in response to an Aug. 19 X post from Gaby Koppel, a writer and TV producer, who said she was "learning German and came across the sentence 'Yes I like Harry Potter but the author is mean.'"
Koppel, who has defended "gender-critical" views, accused Duolingo of letting "#trans ideology infect a language lesson" when it called Rowling "mean."
Gender-critical feminism, also known as trans-exclusionary radical feminism (TERF), excludes and rejects trans people under the premise that gender identity does not exist. Rowling, well-known for her anti-trans views, is a prominent supporter of gender-critical feminism.
Koppel also posted a screenshot of the German lesson. According to the screenshot, Duolingo's lesson asked German learners,
Snopes has previously fact-checked whether Duolingo's CEO said the app would replace human contractors with artificial intelligence. We have also looked into other claims with Rowling at the center, including whether she posted about the sex life of two "Harry Potter" characters in a gay relationship and if a "Harry Potter" video game would include a trans character, despite Rowling's views.
Snopes reporter Aleksandra Wrona, a German speaker, contributed to this report.