Japanese needs to maintain a constant rhythm to pronounce words properly. If you do not pronounce them without a proper rhythm, they become different meanings to Japanese speakers.
| Rhythm | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| きて (come) | ki | te | |
| きって (stamp) | ki | small pause | te |
| Rhythm | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| せけん (society) | se | ke | n | |
| せっけん (soap) | se | small pause | ke | n |
| Rhythm | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| さか (slope) | sa | ka | |||
| さっか (novelist) | sa | pause | ka | ||
| さっかあ (soccer) | sa | pause | ka | a |