2008/10/14 Ramakrishnan Sundaram <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
> 2008/10/14 Deepa Mohan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>:
>
>> 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.
>
> From Latin "chorda" - "cord"
And interestingly, your "chord" has this entry:
Main Entry:
chord
Etymology:
alteration of Middle English cord, short for accord
Date:
1608
: three or more musical tones sounded simultaneously
So, vocal and spinal chords use the "correct" Latin derivative
spelling, "chords" as in music is just Elizabethan misspelling.
Ram
