Synizesis

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Synizesis (Greek: Συνιζησις, a sitting together) is a poetic figure of speech in which two consecutive vowel sounds are pronounced as a single phoneme so that certain words adhere to a particular poetic meter. Unlike the phenomenon of crasis, synizesis requires that the vowels in question belong to separate syllables in a single word. The vowels do not form a diphthong as a result.

For example, in Virgil's Aeneid, "dehinc" in "Eurum ad se Zephyrumque vocat, dehinc talia fatur" is pronounced as one syllable by synizesis.