On Tue, Oct 14, 2008 at 2:26 AM, Deepa Mohan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Why is it that the word "cords" is always mixed up, even by erudite writers, > with the word "chords"? "Chords" are a combination of notes; "cords" are > strings, and "vocal cords" are what human beings have...an organ where the > string-like features are "twanged" to produce sound and speech. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocal_folds#Spelling Vocal cords, a term commonly used to refer to the vocal folds, is also spelled 'vocal chords', possibly due to the musical connotations or to confusion with the geometrical definition of the word "chord". While both spellings are historically correct, standard American spelling is 'vocal cords'. [7] According to the Oxford English corpus, contemporary writers opt for vocal chords instead of vocal cords 49% of the time.[8] [9] The 'vocal chords' variant has long been accepted in the United Kingdom (along with other anatomical uses like 'spinal chord'). Even in the United States, both variants can be found from early on, and it was only later on that American writers settled on 'vocal cords' as the standard version.[10][11] -- Please read our new blog at: http://blog.prathambooks.org
