cord
Americannoun
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cords
plural
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a string or thin rope made of several strands braided, twisted, or woven together.
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Electricity. a small, flexible, insulated cable.
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a ribbed fabric, especially corduroy.
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a cordlike rib on the surface of cloth.
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any influence that binds or restrains.
cord of marriage.
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Anatomy. a cordlike structure.
the spinal cord;
umbilical cord.
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a unit of volume used chiefly for fuel wood, now generally equal to 128 cu. ft. (3.6 cu. m), usually specified as 8 feet long, 4 feet wide, and 4 feet high (2.4 m × 1.2 m × 1.2 meters). cd, cd.
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a hangman's rope.
verb (used with object)
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cords,
present (3rd person singular)
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corded,
past participle, past
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cording
present participle
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to bind or fasten with a cord or cords.
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to pile or stack up (wood) in cords.
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to furnish with a cord.
noun
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string or thin rope made of several twisted strands
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a length of woven or twisted strands of silk, etc, sewn on clothing or used as a belt
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a ribbed fabric, esp corduroy
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any influence that binds or restrains
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Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): flex. a flexible insulated electric cable, used esp to connect appliances to mains
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anatomy any part resembling a string or rope
the spinal cord
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a unit of volume for measuring cut wood, equal to 128 cubic feet
verb
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to bind or furnish with a cord or cords
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to stack (wood) in cords
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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cordsimple
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cordssimple
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have cordedperfect
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has cordedperfect
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am cordingprogressive
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are cordingprogressive
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is cordingprogressive
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have been cordingperfect progressive
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has been cordingperfect progressive
Past
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cordedsimple
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had cordedperfect
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was cordingprogressive
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were cordingprogressive
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had been cordingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cord
1250–1300; Middle English coord ( e ) < Anglo-French, Old French corde < Latin chorda < Greek chordḗ gut; confused in part of its history with chord 1
Explanation
A cord is a thin rope made of strands of twisted material. You might tie a package with a cord or wear a black cord hung with a silver charm around your neck. Clothing can be decorated with pieces of cord or feature a cord tied like a belt around the waist. Another kind of cord is the electrical kind, which is usually made of plastic. Firewood is measured in units that are also called cords, each one about 128 cubic feet. This type of cord got its name in the 17th century from the way the wood was measured: by tying a length of cord around it.
Vocabulary lists containing cord
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Commonly Confused Words, List 5
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Commonly Confused Words, List 7
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Harris, from Canada, was 15 and "on the verge of independence" when she sustained a life-altering spinal cord injury, leaving her tetraplegic and requiring round the clock care.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
A coyote is bathed in red light; a cougar stalks near a grand piano; a man stands in a tropical jungle surrounded by mist; a pay phone off the hook dangles by its cord.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Their study found that KCL-286, an experimental drug originally developed for spinal cord injury that has already passed Phase 1 safety trials, reduced multiple hallmarks of Alzheimer's in a mouse model.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 17, 2026
The cube-like adapter converts the current from the wall into lower-voltage power that flows through the cord and into the device.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
The stalk is your brain stem, which plugs into your spinal cord.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
Tyler suffered nodules on her vocal cords and underwent surgery to remove them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Other remaining brand-name correspondents, including the ageless Lesley Stahl, for a while were feared to be fingering their rip cords too.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Gillian, Clive and their families are part of research into the condition at Addenbrooke's Hospital and Clive and his daughter Evans have signed up to have their brains and spinal cords donated for research.
From BBC ● May 6, 2026
"The costs of the products that we are making are being very greatly affected," the 42-year-old said, listing plastic, copper for the vacuum's motor and raw materials in its power cords.
From Barron's ● May 6, 2026
He stumbled into workbenches, knocked over toolboxes, and tripped on electrical cords.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
The most practical option was an old-school corded phone and a cellular-to-landline adapter.
From Slate ● Jan. 27, 2026
She still packs corded earphones for in-flight entertainment systems along with Apple AirPods Pro 3, which she loves for their size and noise-canceling capabilities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
The analysis of corded ware vessels also challenges previous considerations.
From Science Daily ● May 21, 2024
The work had been transformed, from an intimate album I’d listened to on an iPod with corded earbuds that didn’t stay put into a lavish stage production with sets, actors, choreography.
From New York Times ● Mar. 23, 2024
On one side was the wall of a building and he slumped against it, panting, the corded vein in his forehead inflamed.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
I rescued an abandoned set of chairs missing their woven seats, watched a YouTube video on cording and turned them into living-room fixtures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Lip cord is a tiny cording that creates a delicate and refined accent.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 18, 2023
Bubble wrap might crush your standard ribbon bows, so the Container Store suggests using more wire-edged ribbon or tulle, which can be fluffed out, or cording.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 1, 2020
Jewel-toned blue, green and purple nylon was cut into pretty sleeveless dresses slit and ruched with cording detail to softly accent the body.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2016
It takes hours and hours; and the cording and all.
From Daisy by Susan Warner
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
