Editing Elision (section)

===Japanese===
{{See also|Japanese phonology#Devoicing|Japanese particles|Honorific speech in Japanese#Honorific prefixes}}{{More citations needed|section|date=January 2024}}
Elision is extremely common in the pronunciation of the [[Japanese language]]. In general, a high vowel ({{IPA|/i/}} or {{IPA|/u/}}) that appears in a low-pitched syllable between two voiceless consonants is devoiced and often deleted outright. However, unlike French or English, Japanese does not often show elision in writing. The process is purely phonetic and varies considerably depending on the dialect or level of formality. A few examples (slightly exaggerated; apostrophes added to indicate elision):

:松下さんはいますか？ ''Matsushita-san wa imasu ka?'' ("Is Mr. Matsushita in?")
:Pronounced: ''matsush'tasanwa imas'ka''
:{{IPA|ja|matsɯɕi̥tasaɰ̃wa imasɯ̥ka|IPA}}

:失礼します ''Shitsurei shimasu'' ("Excuse me")
:Pronounced: ''sh'tsureishimas' ''
:{{IPA|ja|ɕi̥tsɯɾeː ɕimasɯ̥|IPA}}

Gender roles also influence elision in Japanese. It is considered masculine to elide, especially the final ''u'' of the polite verb forms (''-masu'', ''desu''), but women are traditionally encouraged to do the opposite. However, excessive elision is generally associated with lower [[Prestige (sociolinguistics)|prestige]], and inadequate elision is seen as overly fussy or old-fashioned. Some [[dialects of Japanese language|nonstandard dialects]], such as [[Kagoshima dialect|Satsuma-ben]], are known for their extensive elision.

It is common for successive o sounds to be reduced to a single o sound, as is frequently encountered when the particle を (wo/o) is followed by the beautifying or honorific お (o).