contracted sound; open yōon
Linguistics term for a mora that combines a consonant with a palatal glide, such as きゃ (kya), しゅ (shu), or ちょ (cho). Contrasts with 合拗音 (historical labialized sounds like くゎ).
See also: 拗音
Sounds like 'kya', 'shu', and 'cho' are called open yōon.
現代日本語の拗音はほとんどが開拗音である。
Most yōon in modern Japanese are open yōon.
A phonological term formed from 開 and 拗音, contrasting with 合拗音. It denotes palatalized contracted syllables, historically distinguished from contracted syllables containing a labial glide.