Can international students ask questions in class because of language problems?

Want to be better.

Got a first-time response from professors that they prefer students not asking them questions during class simply because of language barriers. I felt offended.

I don't feel ashamed of letting people see I have online translator on during class. I look up words I hear that I am not sure about meanings. One student once told me "sorry, I saw that you were looking up words using dictionary. I was not sure if you don't want people to know that.." I don't understand. To the opposite, I felt proud that I can guess what the word I just hear might be and find it in seconds. Do people really think non-English speaker is lower than normal people? Do I think people who don't speak English better than me are second-class?