aphesis
the disappearance or loss of an unstressed initial vowel or syllable, as in the formation of the word slant from aslant.
Origin of aphesis
1Words Nearby aphesis
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use aphesis in a sentence
This English tendency to aphesis is satirised in a French song of the 14th century, intentionally written in bad French.
The Romance of Words (4th ed.) | Ernest Weekleyaphesis is the loss of the unaccented first syllable, as in 'baccy and 'later.
The Romance of Names | Ernest WeekleyBut confusion with the article is not necessary in order to bring about aphesis.
The Romance of Words (4th ed.) | Ernest Weekley
British Dictionary definitions for aphesis
/ (ˈæfɪsɪs) /
the gradual disappearance of an unstressed vowel at the beginning of a word, as in squire from esquire
Origin of aphesis
1Derived forms of aphesis
- aphetic (əˈfɛtɪk), adjective
- aphetically, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Browse