cord
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A small flexible electrical conductor composed of wires insulated separately or in bundles and assembled together usually with an outer cover.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kawrdIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈkɔɹd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A small flexible electrical conductor composed of wires insulated separately or in bundles and assembled together usually with an outer cover; the electrical cord of a lamp, sweeper ((US) vacuum cleaner), or other appliance.
A light insulated conductor for household use
countable
A long, thin, flexible length of twisted yarns (strands) of fibre (a rope, for example).
uncountable
Any quantity of such material when viewed as a mass or commodity.
A unit of measurement for firewood, equal to 128 cubic feet (4 × 4 × 8 feet), composed of logs and/or split logs four feet long and none over eight inches diameter. It is usually seen as a stack four feet high by eight feet long.
figuratively
Any influence by which persons are caught, held, or drawn, as if by a cord.
verb
To flatten a book during binding.
Stack in cords
To furnish with cords.
To tie or fasten with cords.
To arrange (wood, etc.) in a pile for measurement by the cord.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A small flexible electrical conductor composed of wires insulated separately or in bundles and assembled together usually with an outer cover; the electrical cord of a lamp, sweeper ((US) vacuum cleaner), or other appliance.
Used this way, cord is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It stays understated rather than dramatic. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Mild
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- electric cord , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use cord
- “The bundle was tied with a cord.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Cotton trousers made of corduroy cloth.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
Strong highly flavored sweet liquor usually drunk after a meal.
Not having a cord.
In a hearty manner.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Any of several perennial grasses of the genus Spartina.
Blood obtained from the umbilical cord at birth.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: small flexible electrical conductor composed of wires insulated separately
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.