Definition of "lenite" []

• To undergo an increase in sonority or become lenis. Said of consonant sounds, as when (p) changes to (b), (b) to (v), or (v) to (w). (verb-intransitive)
• To cause (a consonant sound) to lenite. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.