hiatus
/haɪˈeɪtəs/ · noun
Meaning
- A gap in a series, making it incomplete.
- An interruption, break, pause or absence.
- An temporary break from work, especially one which is unexpected.
- A gap in geological strata.
- An opening in an organ.
- A syllable break between two vowels, without an intervening consonant.
Etymology / origin
Learned borrowing from Latin hiātus (“opening”) (mid-16th century), from hiō (“stand open, yawn”).
- hiātus(la)→
- hiatus (English)
- Relations: lbor
Related words
Descendant words
- hiatus(Finnish) (cog)
- hiatus(Malay) (bor)
Sources
No citations have been attached yet.