This word is acceptable for play in the US & UK dictionaries that are being used in the following games:

• Lexulous
• Wordscraper
• Wordosaur

n. The loss of an initial, usually unstressed vowel, as in cute from acute.

n. The loss of the initial unstressed vowel of a word.

n. The loss of a short unaccented vowel at the beginning of a word; -- the result of a phonetic process.

n. The gradual and unintentional removal of a short unaccented vowel at the beginning of a word; a special form of apheresis, as in squire for esquire, down for adown, etc.

n. the gradual disappearance of an initial (usually unstressed) vowel or syllable as in `squire' for `esquire'

"Among phonetic changes which occur with more or less regularity are those called aphesis, epenthesis, epithesis, assimilation, dissimilation, and metathesis, convenient terms which are less learned than they appear."

prothesis   

deletion    omission    apheresis   

aphetic    aphetized    aphetism