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chord: chord: see cord
harpsichord: harpsichord: [17] Harpsichord means literally ‘harp-string’. Harp [OE] is a Germanic word. It comes from a prehistoric West and North Germanic *kharpōn, which also produced German harfe, Dutch harp, and Swedish harpa, and was borrowed into the Romance languages via late Latin harpa (its Italian descendant, arpa, gave English arpeggio [18]). When the harpsichord was developed in the late 16th century, it was named in Italian arpicordo, a compound formed with corda ‘string’. English acquired the term via the now obsolete French harpechorde, for some unknown reason inserting an s in the process.
=> arpeggio, harp
horde: horde: see hoard
chord (n.1): "related notes in music," 1590s, ultimately a shortening of accord (or borrowed from a similar development in French) and influenced by Latin chorda "catgut, a string" of a musical instrument (see cord (n.)). Spelling with an -h- first recorded c. 1600, from confusion with chord (n.2). Originally two notes; of three or more from 18c.
chord (n.2): "structure in animals resembling a string," 1540s, alteration of cord (n.), by influence of Greek khorde "gut-string, string of a lyre, tripe," from PIE *ghere- "gut, entrail" (see yarn). The geometry sense is from 1550s; meaning "feeling, emotion" first attested 1784.
Chordata: 1880, Modern Latin, from Latin chorda "cord, string" (see cord (n.)) + ending from Vertebrata.
chordate: 1885, noun and adjective, from Chordata.
clavichord (n.): mid-15c., from Medieval Latin clavicordium (15c.), from Latin clavis "a key" (see slot (n.2)) + chorda "a string" (see cord).
harpsichord (n.): 1610s, from French harpechorde "harp string," from Modern Latin harpichordium (source also of Italian arpicordo), from harpa (see harp (n.)) + chorda "string" (see cord). The unexplained intrusive -s- in the English word is there by 1660s.
horde (n.): 1550s, from West Turkic (compare Tatar urda "horde," Turkish ordu "camp, army"), to English via Polish, French, or Spanish. The initial -h- seems to have been acquired in Polish. Transferred sense of "uncivilized gang" is from 1610s. Related: Hordes.
notochord (n.): 1848, coined in English by English anatomist Sir Richard Owen (1804-1892) from chord + comb. form of Greek noton "back," from PIE *not- "buttock, back" (cognates: Latin natis "buttock," sopurce of Italian, Spanish nalga, Old French nache "buttock, butt").
urochord: "A notochord that is confined to or present in the tail region, especially as characteristic of certain tunicates (urochordates). Now rare", Late 19th cent.; earliest use found in Thomas Huxley (1825–1895), biologist and science educationist. From uro- + chord.
octachord: "A series of eight notes, as the ordinary diatonic scale", Mid 17th cent. As adjective from classical Latin octōchordos having eight strings or notes (Vitruvius) and its etymon ancient Greek ὀκτάχορδος having eight strings or notes from ὀκτα- + χορδή; compare French octacorde, octocorde. As noun from post-classical Latin octachordum, octochordum musical instrument with eight strings from Hellenistic Greek ὀκτάχορδον series of eight notes, use as noun of neuter singular of ancient Greek ὀκτάχορδος; compare French octacorde eight-stringed lyre, octocorde eight-stringed instrument, scale with eight notes.