haplology
/hæpˈlɑ.lə.dʒi/
noun
- The process in which a sound or syllable is dropped from a word when it is repeated or similar to a nearby sound, making the word shorter.
- Haplology often happens naturally in fast speech, like saying 'probly' instead of 'probably'.
- The word 'England' comes from 'Engla land' through haplology, losing one 'la' syllable.
- Linguists study haplology to understand how languages change over time.