ABSTRACT
This term is applied to a phonological phenomenon. When two vowels are juxtaposed and both are clearly enunciated, a break occurs between them which is known as hiatus. There is, for example, a hiatus after pre-in preempt and after re-in reassess. The word hiatus, deriving from Latin hiare meaning ‘to yawn’, can be somewhat misleading in that it suggests a gap or silence between two vowels, whereas in normal speech we usually introduce a glide from one to the other.
