chord

Variant of cord, with spelling alteration due to Latin chorda (“cord”), ultimately from Ancient Greek (Doric) χορδά (khordá), (Ionic) χορδή (khordḗ, “string of gut, the string of a lyre”)

• (UK) IPA^(key): /kɔː(ɹ)d/
• (US) enPR: kôrd, IPA^(key): /kɔɹd/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Homophone: cord

chord (plural chords)

1. (music) A harmonic set of three or more notes that is heard as if sounding simultaneously.
   • 1956, Delano Ames, chapter 14, in Crime out of Mind‎:

     He struck the opening chords of the passage; but this time Irene's voice was silent. Victor stopped in the middle of an arpeggio.

2. (geometry) A straight line between two points of a curve.
3. (engineering) A horizontal member of a truss.
4. (aeronautics) The distance between the leading and trailing edge of a wing, measured in the direction of the normal airflow.
5. (computing) A keyboard shortcut that involves two or more distinct keypresses, such as Ctrl+M followed by P.
   • 2005, James Avery, Visual Studio hacks, page 99:

     Ctrl-K is the default first key for chords, but you can create chords using any keys that you want.

6. The string of a musical instrument.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Milton to this entry?)

7. (anatomy) A cord.
8. (graph theory) An edge that is not part of a cycle but connects two vertices of the cycle.

• mixed-interval chord
• strike a chord, touch a chord
• glasschord

chord (third-person singular simple present chords, present participle chording, simple past and past participle chorded)

1. (transitive) To write chords for.
   • 2003, Dan Levenson, Clawhammer Banjo from Scratch

     This chording technique works well for learning any tune, but this is the only tune of the set that I will write out completely as a chorded version.

2. (music) To accord; to harmonize together.

   This note chords with that one.

3. (transitive) To provide with musical chords or strings; to string; to tune.
   • Dryden

     When Jubal struck the chorded shell.

   • Beecher

     Even the solitary old pine tree chords his harp.

• simultaneity