# accord

/əˈkɔɹd/ (US) · /ɐkˈɔːd/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/accord
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. formal agreement

noun · CEFR B2 · Formal

a formal agreement between countries, organisations, or people.

For teachers: a formal agreement or treaty between parties, often international or political in nature.

- The two nations signed a peace accord to end the long border dispute.
- The environmental accord established strict carbon emission targets for all participating member states over the next decade.

### 2. harmony or agreement

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal

a state where people or things agree or work well together.

For teachers: concurrence of opinion or action; a state of harmony between different elements.

- The committee reached an accord after hours of difficult discussion.
- The architectural design was in perfect accord with the natural landscape of the surrounding valley.

### 3. own free will

noun · CEFR B2

doing something because you want to, not because someone forced you.

For teachers: voluntary or spontaneous impulse to act; almost exclusively used in the phrase 'of one's own accord'.

- The witness decided to come forward of her own accord to tell the truth.
- He resigned of his own accord before the board had the opportunity to formally review his performance.

Usage: Commonly used in the prepositional phrase 'of one's own accord'.

### 4. to grant or give

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal

to give someone a particular kind of treatment, status, or respect.

For teachers: to grant, concede, or bestow something upon someone, typically a status, right, or privilege.

- The visiting president was accorded a very warm welcome by the local community.
- The constitution accords certain fundamental rights to every citizen, regardless of their social or economic standing.

Usage: Transitive verb; often takes an indirect object (to accord someone something).

### 5. to match or agree

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal

to be the same as or match something else.

For teachers: to be consistent with or correspond to a particular fact or rule.

- His version of the story does not accord with the evidence found by the police.
- The results of the second experiment did not accord with the initial hypothesis proposed by the research team.

Usage: Intransitive verb; usually followed by the preposition 'with'.

## Examples

- The two nations signed a peace accord yesterday.
- After months of difficult negotiations, the leaders finally reached an accord on environmental protection standards.
- The historic accord aimed to resolve the long-standing border dispute by establishing a demilitarised zone and facilitating joint economic development projects in the region.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.