2 syllables: con, cord. Stress on con.
KAHN-kawrd
/ˈkɑˌnkɔɹd/
concord is pronounced KAHN-kawrd (/ˈkɑˌnkɔɹd/). It has two syllables (con-cord), with the stress on "con". Concord is a word meaning agreement or harmony between people or groups. It can also refer to an agreement or treaty, or to a state of harmony within a community. In linguistics, concord denotes agreement between words in case, number, or gender. The term can function as a noun or, less commonly, as a proper name in titles or places.
Concord is a word meaning agreement or harmony between people or groups. It can also refer to an agreement or treaty, or to a state of harmony within a community. In linguistics, concord denotes agreement between words in case, number, or gender. The term can function as a noun or, less commonly, as a proper name in titles or places.
"The diplomats signed a concord ensuring lasting peace."
"There was strong concord between the teams on the project goals."
"In Latin grammar, concord governs how adjectives agree with nouns."
Pronounce as two syllables: CON-cord. In US English, typically /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːrd/; in many contexts, you’ll hear /ˈkɑŋ.kɔːrd/ with a back vowel. The first syllable carries primary stress. Ensure the /k/ is released sharply, the /ɒ/ or /ɑ/ is a short open back vowel, and the second syllable has a long /ɔː/ or /ɔːr/ with rhotic or non-rhotic ending depending on accent. IPA: US /ˈkɑŋ.kɔɚd/ or /ˈkɔŋ.kɔɹd/, UK /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːd/. Audio reference: listen to careful diction sources or pronouncing dictionaries for confirmation.
Common errors: 1) Slurring the first syllable into a quick ‘con-’ and losing the primary stress; 2) Creating an overly tight /k/ onset or a mis-specified vowel in the first syllable as /ɒ/ vs /ɑ/; 3) The second syllable is often shortened or de-emphasized, leading to /ˈkɒŋ.kɔ/ without the final /d/. Correction: clearly articulate /k/ with a crisp release, choose the short/open back vowel /ɒ/ (UK) or /ɑ/ (US) for the first vowel, maintain syllable separation, and finalize with a clear /d/ at the end. Practice with slow repeats: CON-cord, then faster with natural rhythm.
In US English, you’ll often hear two stressed syllables with a rhotic ending: /ˈkɑŋ.kɔɹd/ or /ˈkɑŋ.kɔɚd/. UK English favors /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːd/ with non-rhoticity affecting the ending; the final /d/ is typically clear. Australian English tends toward /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːd/ with a similar non-rhotic pattern and a slightly longer second vowel. Across accents, the vowel in the first syllable is the main diphthong/monophthong variance (RP/GA split: /ɒ/ vs /ɑ/), while the second syllable remains /kɔːd/ with a dark or rounded quality depending on rhoticity.
The challenge lies in the two tough phonemes: the first syllable’s open back vowel and the final consonant cluster /rd/ in fast speech. For some speakers, the /ɔr/ in the second syllable can blur into a single vowel, especially in non-rhotic accents where the /r/ is not pronounced. Focus on a crisp /k/ release, maintain a clear /ɒ/ or /ɑ/, and end with a distinct /d/. Mastery requires slow practice, then blending, to keep stress on CON and ensure the final consonant is audible.
Concord retains two distinct syllables with primary stress on the first. The final /d/ should be released clearly to avoid sounding like /ˈkɒnkɔː/ or /ˈkɒŋkɔː/. The second syllable carries a long or full vowel /ɔː/ in many British and international varieties. Maintaining the two-syllable rhythm and ensuring the first vowel doesn’t reduce too much are key. IPA reference: US /ˈkɑŋ.kɔɹd/, UK /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːd/.
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US: rhotic endings, flatter second vowel; UK/AU: non-rhotic or lightly rhotic with a longer /ɔː/; The difference in rhoticity affects the final consonant's visible release. Vowel quality: US /ɑ/ vs UK /ɒ/; Second syllable /ɔː/ in most varieties, but American practitioners might have a more rounded /ɔɹ/ in connected speech. IPA anchors: /ˈkɑŋ.kɔɹd/ (US rhotic), /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːd/ (UK non-rhotic), /ˈkɒŋ.kɔːd/ (AU). Use precise lip rounding and jaw openness to replicate each variant; practice with word pairs and sentence context.
Concord traces to Middle English from Old French concord and Latin concord-, which derives from com- (together) + cordis (heart). The meaning evolved from a general sense of “heart together” or “agreement among people” to the more formal sense of harmony or treaty. In late Latin and Medieval Latin, concordia carried the notion of agreement, harmony of opinions, or concord of elements in a sentence or clause. English usage adopted concord to describe both social agreement and grammatical agreement (subject–verb and noun–adjective concord). Over time, its broader political and social meaning narrowed in everyday use to refer to alliances or harmonious relations, while in grammar it remained a technical term for agreement. First known use in English appears in the 14th century, anchored by ecclesiastical and legal contexts where concordia and concord were employed to describe treaties and agreements, and by the 16th–18th centuries, it commonly appeared in diplomacy and liturgical language as “concord.” Today, concord operates in two primary domains—social/political harmony and grammatical agreement—retaining its Latin-root sense of “together with heart.”
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "concord" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "concord"
-ord sounds
-ard sounds
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