The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Syncope \Syn"co*pe\, n. [L. syncope, syncopa, Gr. ? a cutting
   up, a syncope; akin to ? to beat together, to cut up, cut
   short, weavy; sy`n with + ? to strike, cut.]
   1. (Gram.) An elision or retrenchment of one or more letters
      or syllables from the middle of a word; as, ne'er for
      never, ev'ry for every.
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   2. (Mus.) Same as Syncopation.
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   3. (Med.) A fainting, or swooning. See Fainting.
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   4. A pause or cessation; suspension. [R.]
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            Revely, and dance, and show,
            Suffer a syncope and solemn pause.    --Cowper.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

syncope
    n 1: a spontaneous loss of consciousness caused by insufficient
         blood to the brain [syn: faint, swoon, syncope,
         deliquium]
    2: (phonology) the loss of sounds from within a word (as in
       `fo'c'sle' for `forecastle') [syn: syncope, syncopation]