# Linguistics term for blurring words/sounds together **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 28, 2023, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/linguistics-term-for-blurring-words-sounds-together/978949 "2023-01-28T17:23:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![brossa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brossa/32/3040_2.png) [@brossa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brossa)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/linguistics-term-for-blurring-words-sounds-together/978949/1 "2023-01-28T17:23:51Z")
When you sing the alphabet song, there comes a point when you hit “h, i, j, k, elemenohpee”. I wouldn’t quite call it a contraction since there aren’t any sounds being dropped. I’m struggling to come up with a better English example off the top of my head. Anyway, does that fall under the umbrella of elision or is it something else? ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2023, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/linguistics-term-for-blurring-words-sounds-together/978949/2 "2023-01-28T17:34:46Z")
In addition to the terms _contraction_ and _elision_ that you’ve mentioned, there’s _syncope_: > **[Syncope (phonology)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syncope_(phonology))** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > In phonology, syncope (/ˈsɪŋkəpi/; from Ancient Greek: συγκοπή, romanized: sunkopḗ, lit. 'cutting up') is the loss of one or more sounds from the interior of a word, especially the loss of an unstressed vowel. It is found in both synchronic and diachronic analyses of languages. Its opposite, whereby sounds are added, is epenthesis. > Synchronic analysis studies linguistic phenomena at one moment of a language's history, usually the present, in cont... But I’m not sure any of these terms would apply to the specific example you gave, that just seems like a speed difference. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/linguistics-term-for-blurring-words-sounds-together/978949/3 "2023-01-29T09:17:07Z")
Synaloepha? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/linguistics-term-for-blurring-words-sounds-together/978949/4 "2023-01-29T10:13:32Z")
> [@brossa](#): > > I wouldn’t quite call it a contraction since there aren’t any sounds being dropped. I’m struggling to come up with a better English example off the top of my head. > > Anyway, does that fall under the umbrella of elision or is it something else? As you said, there’s no sound being dropped; no sound being elided. The fact that the syllables flow together nicely doesn’t change that. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2023, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/linguistics-term-for-blurring-words-sounds-together/978949/5 "2023-01-29T10:46:32Z")
The “liaison” phenomenon in French comes to mind (words that, in their own, would be pronounced separately and/or with silent letters at the end are pronounced in full and flowing into each other when in a sentence).