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synizesis definition

syni·ze·sis (sin′ə zē′sis)

noun pl. synizeses -·ses (-sēz)

  1. the contraction of two adjacent vowels into a single syllable, without the formation of a diphthong
  2. Biol. the massing of the chromatin in meiosis during synapsis

Etymology: LL < Gr synizēsis < synizanein, to sink in, collapse < syn-, with + hizein, to sit

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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