Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

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.

   2. (Mus.) Same as {Syncopation}.

   3. (Med.) A fainting, or swooning. See {Fainting}.

   4. A pause or cessation; suspension. [R.]

            Revely, and dance, and show, Suffer a syncope and
            solemn pause.                         --Cowper.

Source : WordNet®

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