discord

English

Etymology

Circa 1230, Middle English descorde, discorde; from Anglo-Norman, Old French descort (derivative of descorder), descorde (“disagreement”); from Latin discordia, from discord-, discors (“disagreeing, disagreement”), from dis- (“apart”) + cor, cordis, cord-, cors (“heart”)

Verb derives from Middle English discorden, from Anglo-Norman, Old French descorder, from Latin discordāre, from discord-, as above.

Noun

discord (countable and uncountable, plural discords)

1. Lack of concord, agreement or harmony.
   • Bible, Proverbs vi. 19

     A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

   • Burke

     Peace to arise out of universal discord fomented in all parts of the empire.

2. Tension or strife resulting from a lack of agreement; dissension.
3. (music) An inharmonious combination of simultaneously sounded tones; a dissonance.
4. Any harsh noise, or confused mingling of sounds.
   • Francis Bacon

     For a discord itself is but a harshness of divers sounds meeting.

Related terms

• discordant
• Discordianism

Translations

lack of agreement

• Bulgarian: несъгласие (bg) n (nesǎglasie), разногласие (bg) n (raznoglasie)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 不調和 (zh), 不调和 (bùtiáohé), 不和 (zh) (bùhé)

• Dutch: onenigheid f
• Finnish: epäsopu (fi), eripura
• German: Uneinigkeit (de) f, Streit (de) m
• Greek: διχόνοια (el) f (dichónoia), διάσταση (el) f (diástasi), έριδα (el) f (érida)
• Italian: discordia (it) f, dissenso m, zizzania (it) f

• Japanese: 不調和 (ふちょうわ, fuchōwa), 不和 (ja) (ふわ, fuwa)
• Polish: niezgoda (pl) f
• Portuguese: discórdia (pt) f
• Romanian: discordie (ro) f
• Russian: разногласие (ru) n (raznoglásije), разлад (ru) m (razlád), несогласие (ru) n (nesoglásije)
• Scottish Gaelic: mì-chòrdadh m, eas-aonta m, eadar-chasaideachd f
• Spanish: discordia f
• Swedish: missämja (sv) c, oenighet (sv) c, split (sv) n

strife resulting from lack of agreement; dissension

• Bulgarian: раздор (bg) m (razdór)
• Dutch: tweedracht (nl) f
• Finnish: epäsopu (fi), eripura
• French: discorde (fr) f
• German: Zwietracht (de) f
• Greek: διαμάχη (el) f (diamáchi)
• Hindi: अनबन f (anban)

• Italian: discordia (it) f, dissenso
• Portuguese: discórdia (pt) f
• Romanian: discordie (ro) f
• Russian: раздор (ru) m (razdór), рознь (ru) f (rozn'), (colloquial) нелады m pl (neladý)
• Scottish Gaelic: mì-chòrdadh m, eas-aonta m
• Spanish: discordia f

harsh or confused sound

• Dutch: kabaal (nl) n
• Finnish: riitasointu, soraääni (fi)
• German: Missklang (de) m, Lärm (de) m

• Italian: dissonanza f
• Portuguese: discórdia (pt) f

musical dissonance

• Bulgarian: дисонанс (bg) m (disonans)
• Dutch: kakofonie (nl) f
• Finnish: riitasointu
• German: Dissonanz (de) f, Kakophonie (de) f

• Greek: δυσαρμονία (el) f (dysarmonía), παραφωνία (el) f (parafonía)
• Italian: dissonanza f
• Japanese: 不協和音 (ふきょうわおん, fukyōwaon)
• Portuguese: discórdia (pt) f
• Russian: диссонанс (ru) m (dissonáns)
• Swedish: dissonans (sv) c
• Telugu: అపస్వరము (te) (apasvaramu)

Verb

discord (third-person singular simple present discords, present participle discording, simple past and past participle discorded)

1. (archaic) To disagree; to be at variance; to fail to agree or harmonize; clash.
   • Francis Bacon

     The one discording with the other.