Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Hiatus \Hi*a"tus\, n.; pl. L. {Hiatus}, E. {Hiatuses}. [L., fr.
   hiare, hiatum, to gape; akin to E. yawn. See {Yawn}.]
   1. An opening; an aperture; a gap; a chasm; esp., a defect in
      a manuscript, where some part is lost or effaced; a space
      where something is wanting; a break.

   2. (Gram.) The concurrence of two vowels in two successive
      words or syllables. --Pope.