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accord

uh-KORD /əˈkɔːrd/

nounverbB2GRETOEFLIELTSUPSC

formal

An official agreement or treaty between nations, organizations, or groups; or to grant status.

Implies mutual harmony and consensus, often used for landmark international diplomatic settlements like the Paris Accord.

The story behind the word. Tracing back to the Latin root 'cor' meaning heart, 'accord' literally means bringing hearts together ('ad-' + 'cor'). By the 12th century in Old French, 'acorder' signified bringing conflicting parties into harmonious agreement, a meaning preserved today in international diplomacy.

Word relationships

pact: Pact often implies a binding contract or alliance between specific parties, whereas accord emphasizes broad harmony and consensus.
treaty: Treaty refers to a formal, legally binding instrument, while accord can refer to the overarching political consensus document.

discord: Discord refers to disagreement or conflict rather than agreement.
breach: Breach means breaking or violating an agreement.

Commonly confused with

concord: Concord refers to a general state of peaceful harmony, while accord usually refers to a specific formal agreement or document.

Word family

accordingly (adverb): In a way that is appropriate to the conditions or context.
accordance (noun): Conformity or agreement with a rule or request.

Collocations

climate accord
reach an accord
sign an accord
in accord with

Idioms & expressions

in accord with
of one's own accord

Example sentences

"The Paris Accord aims to strengthen the global response to climate change by limiting global temperature rise." International climate diplomacy context
"Delegates worked through the night to reach an accord on cross-border carbon tariff adjustments." Diplomatic negotiations

Memory hook

Think of accord as ACCEPTING with your HEART (cor). Hearts coming together in agreement.

When not to use

Do not use for informal personal agreements like deciding where to eat lunch with a friend.

Fun facts

The term 'accord' is used in perfumery to describe a balanced blend of three or four notes that create a unique single scent.