Discord

How to spell discord

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce discord

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does discord mean?

1. nounDisagreement, tension, or conflict between people or groups.
2. nounA combination of musical notes that sound harsh or unresolved together.

Discord in a sentence

• Years of discord split the family business apart.

• The composer ended the passage on a deliberate discord to unsettle the audience.

• The new policy sowed discord among the staff.

• The choir's flat entry created an obvious discord in the opening bars.

Where does discord come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word comes from the Latin discordia, meaning a lack of agreement or strife, which was built on the adjective discors, 'disagreeing' or 'differing'. That adjective combines the prefix dis-, meaning 'apart' or 'opposite', with cor, cordis, the Latin word for 'heart', so the literal sense is 'hearts apart' or hearts pulling in different directions. English took it in during the 1200s through Old French descord, where it already carried the meaning of quarrel and disagreement. The musical sense, a clash of notes that sounds unpleasant together, grew naturally from the same idea of things that do not match. The buried 'cord' is also the root of 'concord' (hearts together) and 'cordial' (heartfelt), which is a helpful reminder that the ending is spelled cord, like a heart, and not 'cored'.

How the word is built

• dis- (apart, opposite)
• cord (from Latin cor, cordis: heart)