Which language type features a roughly equal distribution of stress across syllables?

• A. Stress-timed language
• B. Syllable-timed language
• C. Mono-timed language
• D. Rhythm-timed language

Answer: (B)

In this context, the rhythm of a language is about how timing and emphasis are spread across syllables. In a syllable-timed language, each syllable tends to have a similar duration, so the cadence feels evenly paced from one syllable to the next. That even timing makes stress appear more evenly distributed across the utterance, rather than clustering on a few syllables or alternating with very short unstressed ones. That’s why this type best matches the idea of a roughly equal distribution of stress across syllables.

The other labels aren’t as good a fit. Stress-timed languages organize rhythm around regularly spaced stressed syllables, which creates variable syllable lengths and less uniform stress distribution. Mono-timed isn’t a standard, widely used category, and rhythm-timed is not the clear term for this specific pattern.