| Kanji in this term | ||
|---|---|---|
| 平 | 板 | 型 |
| へい Grade: 3 | ばん Grade: 3 | かた > がた Grade: 5 |
| kan'on | kan'yōon | kun'yomi |
Compound of平板(heiban,“flat;monotone”) +型(-kata,“type”,rendaku form型(gata)).
平板型• (heiban-gata)
All accent patterns in Japanese may be described as either平板式(heiban-shiki) or起伏式(kifuku-shiki). While起伏式(kifuku-shiki) is further divided into頭高型(atamadaka-gata),中高型(nakadaka-gata), and尾高型(odaka-gata), there are no subcategories to平板式(heiban-shiki). When contrasting with頭高型(atamadaka-gata),中高型(nakadaka-gata), or尾高型(odaka-gata), it is customary to use the word平板型(heiban-gata) to avoid the inconsistency of comparing型(-gata) with式(-shiki).