kochevskölscheWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: koche is a verb, kölsche is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“koche” is a verb and “kölsche” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,672
“koche” frequency rank
#48,293
“kölsche” frequency rank
63965
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature koche kölsche
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kochen Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs kölsch

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set koche and kölsche apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
koche
7 ch
kölsche

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: koche is [ˈkɔxə] while kölsche is [kœlʃə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63965, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

koche is recorded at frequency rank #15,672, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkɔxə]. kölsche is at rank #48,293, tagged as anadj, pronounced [kœlʃə].

Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.

With a confusion score of 63965, this pair ranks #658,092 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of koche vs kölsche

Shared letters: cehk. Private to "koche": o. Private to "kölsche": lsö.

"koche" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "kölsche" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • kochekcohe · kkoche · kocche · koceh · kochhe · kohce · okche

Frequency comparison

koche#15,672
kölsche#48,293

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "koche" and "kölsche" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "koche" is a verb and "kölsche" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "koche" or "kölsche"?
"koche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,672 in our German list, against #48,293 for "kölsche". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering koche vs kölsche

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “koche”; for an adjective, it's “kölsche”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “koche” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list