accord

American  

[uh-kawrd] / əˈkɔrd /

verb (used without object)

• accords,
  present (3rd person singular)
• accorded,
  past participle,  past
• according
  present participle

1. to be in agreement or harmony; agree.

   Synonyms:

   concur, harmonize

   Antonyms:

   conflict

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verb (used with object)

• accords,
  present (3rd person singular)
• accorded,
  past participle,  past
• according
  present participle

1. to make agree or correspond; adapt.

   Synonyms:

   reconcile

2. to grant; bestow.

   to accord due praise.

   Antonyms:

   withdraw, deny, withhold

3. Archaic. to settle; reconcile.

noun

• accords
  plural

1. proper relationship or proportion; harmony.

2. a harmonious union of sounds, colors, etc.

3. consent or concurrence of opinions or wills; agreement.

4. an international agreement; settlement of questions outstanding among nations.

idioms

1. of one's own accord, without being asked or told; voluntarily.

   We did the extra work of our own accord.

accord British  

/ əˈkɔːd /

noun

1. agreement; conformity; accordance (esp in the phrase in accord with )

2. consent or concurrence of opinion

3. unanimously

4. pleasing relationship between sounds, colours, etc; harmony

5. a settlement of differences, as between nations; compromise

6. voluntarily

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verb

1. to be or cause to be in harmony or agreement

2. (tr) to grant; bestow

accord More Idioms  

1. see of one's own accord.

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Usage

What does accord mean? To accord is to agree or be in harmony with someone or something. Accord is usually used formally to mean to work together. It is often used in official decrees, analysis of public figures, and governmental affairs. Related to this, an accord is an agreement. In particular when nations agree to something, we often say they have reached an accord, as with the Paris Climate Accords. To accord can also mean to grant or bestow. Oftentimes an item that is accorded is something that will strengthen a relationship or agreement, as with according someone praise or forgiveness. Example: Failure to reach an accord will mean the battle will continue for years to come.

Synonym Usage

See correspond.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• accorder
  noun
• nonaccord
  noun
• preaccord
  noun
• accordable
  adjective
• unaccordable
  adjective
• unaccorded
  adjective
• well-accorded
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• accords
  plural

Participles

• according
  present
• accorded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• accord
  simple
• accords
  simple
• have accorded
  perfect
• has accorded
  perfect
• am according
  progressive
• are according
  progressive
• is according
  progressive
• have been according
  perfect progressive
• has been according
  perfect progressive

Past

• accorded
  simple
• had accorded
  perfect
• was according
  progressive
• were according
  progressive
• had been according
  perfect progressive

Future

• will accord
  simple
• will have accorded
  perfect
• will be according
  progressive
• will have been according
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of accord

First recorded in 1100–50; Middle English a(c)corden, late Old English acordan, from Old French acorder, from Vulgar Latin accordāre (unrecorded), from Latin ac- ac- + cor (stem cord- ) “heart” ( see cordial); see also heart

Explanation

An accord is an agreement between groups or even nations, like a formal peace accord that prevents war or the accord between you and your sister specifying who gets to use the car on which days. Accord is an agreeable word. If you and your best friend are always in accord, you agree about everything. And if you do something of your own accord, you do it without prompting from someone else. As a verb, accord means to be in harmony or agreement, or to allow. Perhaps your enhanced vocabulary will accord you, or allow you, a better understanding of language.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

accord accords accorded according

In his campaign for the top Fed job, Warsh said he was open to a rewrite of the accord, but he hasn’t given any specifics.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

Canadian producer prices declined in June, marking the first month-over-month drop in five months, after a tentative accord between the U.S. and Iran led to lower energy prices.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

The move could complicate a 30-year accord to give the kingdom a civilian nuclear program.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026

Washington recently declined to extend the accord in its current form.

From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026

In the end, the doctors were all in accord.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

These accords involve Arab or Muslim countries normalizing relations with Israel.

From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026

The violence largely ended with the signing of peace accords in 1998.

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

The Israeli prime minister famously clashed with Bill Clinton over the implementation of the Oslo peace accords.

From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026

Each turnover being a rare event, most every fresh host has been greeted with a chorus of “Who? What? Why?” before time accords the newcomer a patina of inevitability.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026

My emotional life accords with the designs, too.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

In the 2000s, derivatives created from subprime mortgages were accorded top credit ratings; now, the so-called illiquidity premium on portfolios of loans to small and midsize private companies is considered their secret sauce.

From Barron's ● Mar. 27, 2026

Selecting a Thanksgiving day was a royal prerogative, he declared, accorded solely to him as the representative of the Catholic King James II. Andros named Dec. 1 as Thanksgiving Day for all New England.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 25, 2025

But the authorities are adamant that the former president should be accorded a state funeral to be attended by his successor and given a proper send-off as a former president.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2025

Fans — many? most? all? — saw these arrests as special bad treatment accorded to a famous person, but, says Reubens, “30 years later, I still feel the effects all the time.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2025

In the middle years of the seventeenth century experience stopped being something that accorded naturally with the statements of previous authorities and became a caustic solvent of fabulous beliefs.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

The national average was $2,584 per year, according to Insurify.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 22, 2026

It still needs three permits from the state environmental agency that could take months, according to the township’s engineer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

Most treatment options come in the form of rehabilitation therapy, according to NHS Inform.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

Dalton Rushing is “pain-free” and close to facing live pitching, according to Roberts, but the catcher is “unlikely” to return to catching this season.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

“Or according to me,” Magic said with a twinkle in her eyes, “you could use it to slide down a hill really, really fast!”

From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el

Related Words

• affirm
• agree
• conform
• correspond