n. (also chaining, enchaînement) Any complex phonological change in which several segments (most often vowels) all change their phonetic realizations, with some segments (entering elements) moving into spaces vacated by other segments (leaving...

n. [French: ‘chaining’] 1. See chain shift. 2. In French, the phenomenon in which a word-final consonant which is always pronounced is, when preceding a word-initial vowel, pronounced as part of the first syllable of the following word:...

n. In a chain shift, a segment which moves into the phonological space formerly occupied by another segment moving out of it, the leaving element. Labov...

In the study of historical linguistics and phonetic change, a chain shift is a type of sound shift in which a group of sounds all change at about the same time, with some sounds taking the place of others. Chain shifts may be confined to certain...