Striking Agreements and Chords with Accord

Por Daniel Lupo

We've touched on grammatical agreement in previous lessons, but in this one we're focusing on the word "agreement" itself. The French word for "agreement" is un accord, and its verbal form, accorder, means "to agree" or "to make an agreement":

Et les accords, également. Savoir comment on accorde un adjectif à son sujet, par exemple.

And agreements too. Knowing how you make an adjective agree with its subject, for example.

Captions 11-12, Le saviez-vous? - Les bénéfices de la dictée
Play Caption

Un accord is "an agreement" in all senses, not just a grammatical one. It can refer to an official agreement, something you might sign or seal:

Eh bien, scellons cet accord!

Well then, let's seal this agreement!

Caption 16, Il était une fois... l’Homme - 6. Le siècle de Périclès
Play Caption

Or it can refer to a verbal agreement, to permission or consent:

Il me fallait aussi l'accord de ses parents.

I also needed the consent of her parents.

Caption 30, Le Jour où tout a basculé - Mon père s'oppose à ma passion
Play Caption

It's pretty obvious that this is where the English word "accord" comes from. But did you know that accord is also the root of the word "chord"?

Ce morceau se joue sur trois accords.

This piece is played with three chords.

Caption 7, Leçons de guitare - Leçon 3
Play Caption

(It's not, however, the root of the word "cord." That would be une corde—a cord, rope, or string.)

On another musical note, accord is also the word for "harmony" in a figurative sense, referring to a match, fit, rapport, or understanding:

Le riesling ça reste quand même sur les huîtres un accord parfait.

Riesling still remains in perfect harmony with oysters.

Caption 71, Alsace 20 - 100 recettes pour 100 vins
Play Caption

Alors c'est quoi le bon accord mets et vins?

So what is the good pairing of food and wine?

Caption 8, Alsace 20 - 100 recettes pour 100 vins
Play Caption

Nous sommes en parfait accord.
We are in complete agreement/harmony.

But you're most likely to encounter accord in the expression d'accord, the French equivalent of "OK" or "all right":

D'accord, ça marche pour moi.
OK, that works for me.

D'accord is an abbreviated form of the phrase être d'accord, "to agree" or "to be in agreement":

On s'est quitté d'un commun accord, mais elle était plus d'accord que moi

We left each other with a mutual agreement, but she was more in agreement than I

Caption 51, Grand Corps Malade - Les Voyages en train
Play Caption

Certaines personnes sont pas d'accord avec l'enfermement des animaux.

Some people don't agree with the confinement of animals.

Caption 21, Actus Quartier - Bêtes de scène ?
Play Caption