The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily. :a change of place or condition: as a: transposition of two phonemes in a word (as in the development of crud from curd or the pronunciation \ˈpər-tē\ for pretty. Definition and examples of metathesis in phonetics and phonology. The pronunciation /aks/ for ask is an example of metathesis. See Examples and Observations, below. metathesis [mĕ-tath´ĕ-sis] 1. artificial transfer of a morbid process. 2. a chemical reaction in which an element or radical in one compound exchanges places with. metathesis [mĕ-tath´ĕ-sis] 1. artificial transfer of a morbid process. 2. a chemical reaction in which an element or radical in one compound exchanges places with. The transposition of sounds or letters in a word. Meaning, pronunciation and example sentences, English to English reference content. Milpitas, California) announced today the launch of air-stable catalyst pills (CatPac's) for metathesis chemistry. The self-healing functionality based on the metathesis reaction of DCPD activated by the first-generation Grubbs' catalyst deactivates if the damage occurs at a. metathesis me·tath·e·sis (mĭ-tāth'ĭ-sĭs) n. pl. me·tath·e·ses (-sēz') Double decomposition of chemical compounds in which an element or radical of one. Metathesis of liquid consonants is an important historical change during the development of the Slavic languages: a syllable-final liquid metathesized to become.