1. The act of deleting something written or printed
   "The deletion of that paragraph improved the overall flow of the article"
    
2. The omission that is made when an editorial change shortens a written passage
   "an editor's deletions frequently upset young authors";
   - excision, cut
    
3. Any process whereby sounds or words are left out of spoken words or phrases
   "The deletion of the 't' sound in 'often' is common in casual speech";
   - omission
    
4. (genetics) the loss or absence of one or more nucleotides from a chromosome
   "The deletion of a crucial gene led to severe developmental abnormalities"

Derived forms: deletions

Type of: chromosomal mutation, editing, genetic mutation, linguistic process, mutation, redaction, remotion [archaic], removal

Encyclopedia: Deletion