Definition of: syncope

(sing′kə·pē) noun
1. The elision of a sound or syllable in the middle part of a word, as e'er for ever.
2. Music Syncopation.
3. Pathol. Sudden faintness; swooning, with loss of sensation, motion, and consciousness. See synonyms under STUPOR. [Earlier sincopis <OF sincopin, ult. <LL syncope <Gk. synkopē <syn- together + kop-, stem of koptein strike, cut; refashioned after LL]
—syn′co·pal, syn·cop·ic (sin·kop′ik) adjective