Although disc and disk are listed as variants for something round and flat in shape, each one seems to have a preferred usage. Disc is seen more often in the music industry and throwable objects such as Frisbees, whereas disk is the preferred spelling in computer-related lingo such as floppy disk.

In most cases, disc and disk can be—and are—used interchangeably. In general, the word disk was once much more commonly used, but the two words now have a relatively similar level of use. This all means that there’s really no good rule to remember when to spell it one way or the other.

Discing is a common farming practice that involves using a disk harrow or a set of disks attached to a tractor to break up and loosen the soil. The disks are designed to cut into the soil and break up any compacted areas, creating a more aerated and porous soil structure.

The plow and disc are the preferred field-treatment method of many organic farmers. Here are the basics on how they work. by Rodney Wilson. PHOTO: Terry Wild Stock Photography.

“Use disc in references to phonograph records (disc jockey, discography), optical and laser-based devices (compact disc, laser disc, videodisc), farm implements (disc harrow), and brakes (disc brakes). Use disk in references to the magnetic storage devices used with computers (floppy disk, hard disk) and to the fiber and cartilage between the ...