hiatus

[hahy-ey-tuhs]

noun

plural

hiatuses, hiatus 

1. a break or interruption in the continuity of a work, series, action, etc.

2. a missing part; gap or lacuna.

   Scholars attempted to account for the hiatus in the medieval manuscript.

3. any gap or opening.

   Synonyms: space, interval, break

4. Grammar, Prosody.,  the coming together, with or without break or slight pause, and without contraction, of two vowels in successive words or syllables, as in see easily.

5. Anatomy.,  a natural fissure, cleft, or foramen in a bone or other structure.

hiatus

/ haɪˈeɪtəs /

noun

1. (esp in manuscripts) a break or gap where something is missing

2. a break or interruption in continuity

3. a break between adjacent vowels in the pronunciation of a word

4. anatomy a natural opening or aperture; foramen

5. anatomy a less common word for vulva

Other Word Forms

• hiatal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hiatus¹

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin hiātus “opening, gap,” equivalent to hiā(re) “to gape, open” + -tus, noun suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of hiatus¹

C16: from Latin: gap, cleft, aperture, from hiāre to gape, yawn

Example Sentences

When Alan returned from his hiatus in the 2010s, in the YouTube series Mid Morning Matters and spoof autobiography I, Partridge, a new writing team was in place.

From BBC

Kay called the period a hiatus, which started after she took the media on a tour of Matthew’s childhood home without his consent.

From Los Angeles Times

It is believed to be the only time the two had been spotted together in public in a casual setting since One Direction's hiatus in 2015.

From BBC

The conference this weekend is his second both as DUP leader and since devolution was restored in 2024, following a two-year hiatus.

From BBC

Hansard relied on that sure-footedness in the studio where Irglová “cut to the chase” and reined in his tendency to tinker and noodle — a tactic his band The Frames indulged in when not on hiatus.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• interval 
• lapse