:Aphaeresis:

Pronunciation GB: əˈfɪərəsɪs, GA: əˈfɪrəsɪs

Word-initial deletion. An example is the historical loss of initial k in English in such words as knife, knot. A couple of examples of present day aphaeresis are the pronunciations of it is as tɪz and of it was as twəz. A more specific term for this kind of aphaeresis which involves the deletion of an initial unstressed vowel is aphesis.