Skipping syllables, also known as elision, is a literary device used to shorten a phrase or sentence by omitting one or more syllables. Eliding (7 letters) is the act of omitting a syllable or sound from a word or phrase. Tras (4 letters) and trala (5 letters) are two common examples of elision, where the middle syllable of a word is omitted. Tralala (7 letters) is another example of elision, where two syllables are omitted from a word or phrase.