direct style; plain form style
Linguistics term for the speech style using plain forms (da/dearu, da, etc.), as opposed to the polite style (desu/masu). Often contrasted with 常体 (joutai).
See also: 常体
The direct style in Japanese is often used in conversations between friends.
Academic papers are expected to be written in the direct style.
Compound of 普通 (futsuu, 'ordinary, common') and 体 (tai, 'style, form'). A modern linguistics term.