noun
direct style; plain form
In Japanese linguistics, refers to the plain or direct speech style (da/dearu style) as opposed to the polite distal style (desu/masu style).
常体は「だ・である」調の文体を指す。
Jōtai refers to the writing style using the da/dearu tone.
論文では常体が使われることが多い。
In academic papers, the direct style is often used.