Listen for the fall
The idea
In Tokyo Japanese an accent downstep is a fall from high to low pitch after an accented mora, not extra loudness. H means high and L low. With が, 箸が is H・L・L: the fall follows は. 橋が is L・H・L: it follows し. 飴が is L・H・H, without a downstep in this phrase.
| Phrase | Pitch |
|---|---|
| 箸が | H・L・L |
| 橋が | L・H・L |
| 雨が | H・L・L |
| 飴が | L・H・H |
Examples
- 箸が机の上にあります。The chopsticks are on the table.
- 橋があそこにあります。There is a bridge over there.
- 雨が朝から降っています。It has been raining since morning.
- 飴が箱の中にあります。There is candy in the box.
- 箸をここに置きます。I put the chopsticks here.
- 橋を歩いて渡ります。I walk across the bridge.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No Japanese device voice is available. You can still read the text and use the linked listening resources.
Watch out
A rise from L to H is not the downstep. Regional accents and sentence intonation vary, and synthetic voices may not reproduce these patterns reliably.
Try it yourself
「箸が」（H・L・L）は、どの拍の後に下がりますか。（は／し）
Show answer or example answer
は
は: 箸が is H・L・L, so pitch falls after は.
「橋が」（L・H・L）は、どの拍の後に下がりますか。（は／し）
Show answer or example answer
し
し: 橋が is L・H・L, so the particle が reveals the fall after し.
「飴が」（L・H・H）に下がり目がありますか。（はい／いいえ）
Show answer or example answer
いいえ
いいえ: 飴が is L・H・H; the rise is not a fall.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Japanese sentences where available. We keep your score.
「箸が」（H・L・L）は、どの拍の後に下がりますか。（は／し）
「橋が」（L・H・L）は、どの拍の後に下がりますか。（は／し）
「飴が」（L・H・H）に下がり目がありますか。（はい／いいえ）
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Listen to a reliable Tokyo Japanese recording of each phrase with its particle. Mark the high and low morae, locate any fall, then check the table and repeat aloud.