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cordon

Syllabification: (cor·don)

Pronunciation: /ˈkôrdn/

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Definition of cordon

noun

1a line or circle of police, soldiers, or guards preventing access to or from an area or building:troops threw a cordon around the headquarters

2an ornamental cord or braid.

3 Architectureanother term for stringcourse.

verb

[with object] (cordon off)

prevent access to or from (an area or building) by surrounding it with police or other guards:the city center was cordoned off after fires were discovered in two stores

Origin:

late Middle English (denoting an ornamental braid worn on the person): from Italian cordone, augmentative of corda, and French cordon, diminutive of corde, both from Latin chorda 'string, rope' (see cord). cordon (sense 3 of the noun), the earliest of the current noun senses, dates from the early 18th century

cordon in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of cordon in the British & World English dictionary

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