Synaeresis

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Synaeresis \Syn*aer"e*sis\, Syneresis \Syn*er"e*sis\, n. [NL.,
     fr. Gr. ? a taking or drawing together, fr. ? to take
     together; sy`n with + ? to take, to grasp. See {Syn-}, and
     {Heresy}.] (Gram.)
     The union, or drawing together into one syllable, of two
     vowels that are ordinarily separated in syllabification;


     synecphonesis; -- the opposite of diaeresis.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  synaeresis
       n 1: the contraction of two vowels into a diphthong [syn: {syneresis}]
       2: the separation of liquid from a gel that is caused by
          contraction (as in cheese making) [syn: {syneresis}]