Learn Hardcore Chinese: nà wèi lǎoshī shuōhuà de shēngyīn bù dà, zài chǎo de jiàoshì lǐ bù tài hǎo tīngqīngchu. - That teacher’s voice isn’t loud; in a noisy classroom it’s not very easy to hear clearly.

那位老师 – polite, respectful (very natural for teachers).
那个老师 – neutral, everyday, a bit less polite than 那位.
那老师 – possible in casual speech, but less standard; learners should normally include a measure word.

So the sentence chooses 位 to sound polite and respectful toward the teacher.

What exactly does 说话的声音 mean, and why do we need both 说话 and 声音?

说话 = to speak / speaking
声音 = sound, voice

With 的 in the middle, 说话的声音 literally means “the sound (of his) speaking” → “his speaking voice” or “the way his voice sounds when he speaks”.

Why not just 声音不大?

声音不大 = “(his) voice is not loud.”
说话的声音不大 = more specific: “when he speaks, his voice is not loud.”

Other common options:

那位老师说话声音不大。
那位老师说话不大声。

All focus on the volume when he speaks, not on how often or how much he talks.

What is the function of 的 in 说话的声音 and 吵的教室?

Here 的 links a modifier (verb or adjective) to a noun:

说话的声音 = the 声音 that comes from 说话 → “speaking voice”
吵的教室 = the 教室 that is 吵 → “noisy classroom”

Pattern:

[verb / adjective] + 的 + [noun]

It’s like English “the noisy classroom” or “the speaking voice.”

Without 的, 吵教室 would be wrong or very unnatural. As a beginner, when a verb or adjective directly modifies a noun in front of it, you should almost always include 的.

What nuance does 声音不大 have? Why not say 声音很小?

声音不大 literally = “the voice is not big” → “not loud.”
- This sounds quite neutral and mild: it just states that the volume isn’t high.
声音很小 = “the voice is very small/quiet” → “very soft/quiet.”
- This feels stronger and more evaluative, often with a bit of complaint.

In Chinese, 不大 + adjective often means “not very …” in a softer way:

天气不大冷。 – It’s not very cold.
声音不大。 – The voice is not very loud.

Using 不大 softens the tone in this sentence.

Why do we have both 在 and 里 in 在吵的教室里? Isn’t one of them enough?

在 marks location: “at / in / on.”
里 means “inside.”

Together, 在吵的教室里 means “inside the noisy classroom,” with a clear sense of being within the room.

Basic pattern:

在 + place + 里
- 在图书馆里 – in the library
- 在房间里 – in the room
- 在吵的教室里 – in the noisy classroom

Can you drop one?

吵的教室里不太好听清楚。 – You can say this; 里 itself implies “inside.”
在吵的教室 – possible, but much less common than 在吵的教室里; most natives will add 里 (or 里面).

For learners, 在 + place + 里 is a safe, natural default.

Is 吵 here a verb meaning “to quarrel,” or an adjective meaning “noisy”?

Here 吵 is an adjective meaning “noisy, loud (environment)”:

吵的教室 = “a noisy classroom.”

Other uses of 吵:

Verb: 他们在吵。 – They are arguing / making a lot of noise.
Adjective: 这里太吵了。 – It’s too noisy here.

In this sentence, because 吵 is followed by 的教室, it clearly acts as an adjective modifying 教室.

What does 不太好听清楚 mean structurally? Does 好 here mean “good”?

In 不太好听清楚, 好 does not mean “good.” It means “easy / convenient to.”

Pattern:

好 + verb = “easy / convenient to do that verb”

Examples:

这个字很好写。 – This character is easy to write.
这个地方不好找。 – This place is hard to find.
这本书很好读。 – This book is easy to read.

So:

好听清楚 ≈ “easy to hear (something) clearly.”
不太好听清楚 = “not very easy to hear clearly.”

The full idea is:

在吵的教室里，(老师的话) 不太好听清楚。
In a noisy classroom, it’s not very easy to hear (the teacher) clearly.

What is 听清楚 exactly? How is it different from 听得清楚 or 听不清楚?

听清楚 is verb + result complement:

听 = to hear
清楚 = clear
听清楚 = “to hear (something) clearly (to the point of full understanding).”

Common patterns:

听清楚 (completed result)
- 我听清楚了。 – I heard (it) clearly / I got it.
听得清楚 (describing ability/degree)
- 我听得清楚。 – I can hear (it) clearly.
- 我听不清楚。 – I can’t hear (it) clearly.

In this sentence:

不太好听清楚 = “not very easy to manage to hear clearly.”
If you said 不太听得清楚, it would mean “(I/we/people) can’t quite hear clearly”; very similar meaning, slightly different structure focus (ability vs ease). Both are natural.

Why is it 不太好听清楚, not 太不好听清楚? What’s the difference between 不太 and 太不?

不太 + adj/verb = “not very …” (mild, soft).
- 不太好 – not very good
- 不太清楚 – not very clear
- 不太好听清楚 – not very easy to hear clearly
太不 + adj = “way too not … / extremely not …” (strongly negative, often complaining).
- 太不好了。 – That’s really bad.
- 太不礼貌了。 – That’s extremely impolite.

太不好听清楚 is not natural here; more natural would be:

太难听清楚了。 – It’s way too hard to hear clearly.
太吵了，根本听不清楚。 – It’s too noisy; you basically can’t hear clearly.

The sentence wants a softer meaning (“not very easy”), so 不太好听清楚 is appropriate.

Could we move 在吵的教室里 to the beginning of the sentence?

Yes. Both of these are grammatical and natural:

那位老师说话的声音不大，在吵的教室里不太好听清楚。
- Topic: “That teacher’s speaking voice”
- Comment 1: is not loud
- Comment 2: in a noisy classroom, it’s not very easy to hear clearly.
在吵的教室里，那位老师说话的声音不大，不太好听清楚。
- Starts by setting the location: “In a noisy classroom…”
- Then describes the teacher’s voice.

Chinese allows location/time phrases either at the beginning or just before the verb phrase. Putting 在吵的教室里 at the beginning emphasizes the noisy environment first.

Can we say 很难听清楚 instead of 不太好听清楚?

Yes, but the tone changes slightly.

不太好听清楚 = “not very easy to hear clearly.”
- Softer, more moderate.
- Implies some effort or slight difficulty.
很难听清楚 = “it’s very hard to hear clearly.”
- Stronger and more direct.
- Sounds like a clear complaint.

Both are grammatically fine:

在吵的教室里，很难听清楚。 – In a noisy classroom, it’s very hard to hear clearly.
在吵的教室里，不太好听清楚。 – In a noisy classroom, it’s not very easy to hear clearly.

The original sentence chooses the milder expression.

What does 吵的教室 imply compared to something like 很吵的教室 or 吵闹的教室?

吵的教室 – “a noisy classroom.”
- Matter-of-fact: the room is noisy.
很吵的教室 – “a very noisy classroom.”
- Adds emphasis with 很; clearly more noisy.
吵闹的教室 – also “a noisy classroom,” slightly more descriptive / literary.
- 吵闹 is a disyllabic adjective, often sounds a bit stronger or more vivid.

In everyday speech, 吵的教室 is simple and natural. Adding 很 or using 吵闹的教室 just changes how strongly you emphasize the noisiness.

How should 不太好听清楚 actually be pronounced with tones?

Looking at the characters:

不 – dictionary tone: 4th (bù)
太 – 4th (tài)
好 – 3rd (hǎo)
听 – 1st (tīng)
清楚 – 清 1st (qīng), 楚 usually neutral in this word (chu)

But due to tone sandhi:

不太 → bú tài
- 不 changes from 4th to 2nd tone before another 4th tone.
不大 in the sentence would also normally be pronounced bú dà for the same reason.

So, natural pronunciation:

不大 → bú dà
不太好听清楚 → bú tài hǎo tīng qīng‧chu

(Where 楚 in 清楚 is pronounced with a light, neutral tone.)