Accordance refers to agreement or conformity with a rule, standard, or another reference point. It implies alignment or harmony between actions, policies, or statements and a given guideline or principle. The term is often used in formal or legal contexts to indicate proper compliance or correspondence with established norms.
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"The contract was signed in accordance with international law."
"Her actions were not in accordance with the company’s stated policies."
"They adjusted the report to ensure it was in accordance with the audit requirements."
"The project proceeded in accordance with the designer’s original specifications."
Accordance comes from the noun accord, meaning agreement or harmony, which itself derives from Old French acord, from Latin accordare, meaning to bring into agreement. The core Latin root is accor- from ad- (toward) and cor (heart), conveying the sense of bringing into heart-to-heart agreement. The suffix -ance forms a noun indicating a state or condition. In Middle English and Early Modern English, accordance appeared to denote a state of alignment with rules or standards; legal and formal prose adopted it to express compliance. The word has maintained a formal register, often used in phrases like in accordance with, to denote strict conformity. The first known usages appear in the 14th to 15th centuries in legal and ecclesiastical Latin-based translations into English, evolving to a standard term in administrative and scholarly contexts by the 17th century and continuing in contemporary legal drafting and policy writing.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "accordance" and can often be used interchangeably.
🔄 These words have opposite meanings to "accordance" and show contrast in usage.
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Words that rhyme with "accordance"
-nce sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Say a-COUR-dance with the primary stress on the second syllable: /əˈkɔːrdəns/ (US/UK). The first vowel is a weak schwa, then the stressed /ɔː/ vowel, followed by a light /r/ and final /dəns/. In careful speech, keep the /ɔː/ sound long and avoid turning it into /ɑː/ or /ɒ/. Audio reference: imagine pronouncing 'accord' with a trailing 'ance'.
Common errors include stressing the first syllable instead of the second (a-CCORD-ance) and reducing the middle vowel to a short /ɒ/ or /æ/. Another mistake is pronouncing -ance as /æns/ or /əns/ without the final /d/. Correct by maintaining /əˈkɔːrdəns/ and keeping the /ɔːr/ cluster clear before the nasal /d/.
US and UK both typically use /əˈkɔːrdəns/ with rhotic /r/ and a clear /ɔː/. US often has a slightly tighter /ɔːr/ and flatter vowels, while UK may present a more rounded /ɔː/ and crisper /d/. Australian tends toward a broader /ɔː/ with a relatively non-rhotic or lightly rhotic form depending on speaker, but generally preserves the /ər/ in -ance. IPA guides help map subtle vowel shifts.
The difficulty lies in the multi-syllabic rhythm and the consonant sequence /ˈkɔːr/ + /dəns/, where the r-colored vowel followed by a clean /d/ can blur in fast speech. The unstressed initial syllable adds a secondary challenge, as many know the word visually but slip with the schwa in the first syllable. Focus on the stressed /ɔːr/ and a crisp /d/ to anchor pronunciation.
There is no silent letter in accordance. The primary stress falls on the second syllable: a-CORD-ance /əˈkɔːrdəns/. The 'e' at the end is not silent in this word; it signals the noun form and contributes to the /ən(t)s/ ending. Practically, keep the ending audible and avoid dropping the final /ən(t)s/ to /ns/ or /nts/ in careful speech.
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