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Enrich German vocabulary in Google Sheets with OpenThesaurus and OpenAI

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Enrich German vocabulary in Google Sheets with OpenThesaurus and OpenAI preview
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1. Workflow Overview

Quick Overview This workflow watches a Google Sheets vocabulary list for new German words, looks up synonyms via OpenThesaurus, and uses an OpenAI chat model to generate a JSON formatted example se...

Best for

  • Document Extraction automation workflows
  • AI Summarization automation workflows
  • advanced n8n builders looking for reusable templates

Tools used

n8n-nodes-base.openthesaurus, n8n-nodes-base.googlesheetstrigger, @n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain.agent, @n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain.lmchatopenai, n8n-nodes-base.stickynote, n8n-nodes-base.if, n8n-nodes-base.set, n8n-nodes-base.googlesheets

Source and attribution

This workflow is cataloged by N8N Workflows and links back to its original n8n.io source page by Shinji Watanabe.

Original n8n.io source

1.1 Workflow description

Title
Enrich German vocabulary in Google Sheets with OpenThesaurus and OpenAI
Workflow name
Enrich German vocabulary in Google Sheets with OpenThesaurus and OpenAI

Quick Overview

This workflow watches a Google Sheets vocabulary list for new German words, looks up synonyms via OpenThesaurus, and uses an OpenAI chat model to generate a JSON-formatted example sentence with metadata, then writes the results (or a “not found” note) back to the same sheet.

How it works

  1. Triggers every minute when a new row is added to the selected Google Sheets worksheet.
  2. Sends the new row’s vocabulary value to OpenThesaurus to retrieve the headword and available synonyms.
  3. Checks whether OpenThesaurus returned any terms and, if none are found, updates the row in Google Sheets with a “類義語が見つかりませんでした。” message.
  4. If terms are found, prompts an OpenAI chat model (via an AI Agent) to output strict JSON containing a natural German example sentence using a synonym, the part of speech, a Japanese translation, and a CEFR level estimate.
  5. Extracts the JSON fields and updates the matching Google Sheets row with the generated sentence, part of speech, translation, and level.

Setup

  1. Connect your Google Sheets OAuth credentials and select the target spreadsheet and worksheet for both the trigger and update steps.
  2. Ensure your sheet has columns named vocabulary, Similar Examples sentence, part_of_speech, translation_ja, and level, and that vocabulary can be used to match/update rows.
  3. Add OpenAI credentials (or an OpenAI-compatible connection) for the OpenAI Chat Model used by the AI Agent, and confirm the model name is available in your account.
  4. Enter new German words in the vocabulary column to test, and verify the OpenThesaurus lookup returns terms for your input words.

1.2 Logical Blocks

This catalog entry is organized from the workflow JSON. The node-level section below shows the executable blocks available for review before importing the template.

2. Block-by-Block Analysis

Block 1 - OpenThesaurus

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.openThesaurus - openThesaurus
Config choices
Version 1

Block 2 - Google Sheets Trigger

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.googleSheetsTrigger - googleSheetsTrigger
Config choices
Version 1

Block 3 - AI Agent

Type / Role
@n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain.agent - agent
Config choices
Version 3

Block 4 - OpenAI Chat Model

Type / Role
@n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain.lmChatOpenAi - lmChatOpenAi
Config choices
Version 1.2

Block 5 - Sticky Note1

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 6 - Sticky Note2

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 7 - Sticky Note3

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 8 - Sticky Note4

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 9 - If

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.if - if
Config choices
Version 2.2

Block 10 - Edit Fields

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.set - set
Config choices
Version 3.4

Block 11 - Write AI Results to Sheet

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.googleSheets - googleSheets
Config choices
Version 4.7

Block 12 - Write 'Not Found' to Sheet

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.googleSheets - googleSheets
Config choices
Version 4.7

Block 13 - Sticky Note5

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 14 - Sticky Note6

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 15 - Sticky Note

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

Block 16 - Sticky Note7

Type / Role
n8n-nodes-base.stickyNote - stickyNote
Config choices
Version 1

3. Summary Table

Workflow Enrich German vocabulary in Google Sheets with OpenThesaurus and OpenAI
Complexity advanced
Nodes 16
Categories Document Extraction, AI Summarization
Author Shinji Watanabe
Published 08 Jun 2026

4. Reproducing the Workflow from Scratch

  1. 1. Download the workflow JSON

    Use the JSON export at /data/workflows/16179/16179.json as the source template for this automation.

  2. 2. Import the template into n8n

    Open n8n, import the downloaded JSON, and review each node before activating the workflow.

  3. 3. Configure credentials and variables

    Replace placeholder credentials, API keys, webhook URLs, account IDs, and environment-specific values with your own settings.

  4. 4. Test with sample data

    Run the workflow manually or in a staging workspace, inspect node output, and confirm downstream systems receive the expected data.

  5. 5. Activate and monitor

    Enable the workflow only after testing, then monitor executions, errors, and rate limits during the first production runs.

5. General Notes & Resources

Review imported nodes carefully before activation. This catalog entry is intended to help you inspect the workflow structure, understand required services, and find related templates faster.

Node names, credentials, schedules, webhook paths, and external service limits may need adjustment for your workspace.

Frequently asked questions

What does Enrich German vocabulary in Google Sheets with OpenThesaurus and OpenAI do?

Quick Overview This workflow watches a Google Sheets vocabulary list for new German words, looks up synonyms via OpenThesaurus, and uses an OpenAI chat model to generate a JSON formatted example se...

What do I need before importing this workflow?

Review the workflow JSON, configure any required credentials in n8n, and test the automation in a safe workspace before using it in production.

Can I customize this workflow?

Yes. Use the block-by-block analysis and the downloadable JSON to inspect each node, then adjust credentials, prompts, schedules, filters, or destinations for your Document Extraction, AI Summarization use case.