Learn Hardcore Chinese: nàge chéngshì de gōngyuán hěn ānjìng.

[modifier] + 的 + [noun] = [noun] that belongs to / is related to [modifier]
Examples:
- 老师的书 = the teacher’s book / the book of the teacher
- 北京的冬天 = Beijing’s winter / winter in Beijing

Why is there no separate word for “in” (as in “the park in that city”)?

Chinese often expresses relationships like “in,” “of,” “belonging to” using 的 + word order, instead of a preposition like English “in.”

那个城市的公园 literally: that city’s park
Natural English translation: “the park in that city”

So the idea “in that city” is already contained in the structure [那个城市] + 的 + [公园], and no extra word for “in” is needed.

Why is it 那个 and not just 那 before 城市?

那 nà by itself is a basic demonstrative (“that”), but in modern spoken Mandarin it almost always appears with a measure word:

那个城市 = that city
那个人 = that person
那本书 = that book

So 那 + 个 (or another measure word) is the normal, complete form.
Just 那城市 is possible in some formal/written styles, but sounds unnatural in normal speech.

Could we use a different measure word for 城市 instead of 个, like 座?

Yes. Common options:

那个城市 – completely standard in everyday speech (个 is the default measure word).
那座城市 – a bit more vivid or literary; 座 is a measure word for large, fixed objects (cities, mountains, buildings).

So you could say:

那座城市的公园很安静。 – also correct, slightly more formal/literary in feel.

Why is there no measure word before 公园 (like 一个公园)? Don’t Chinese nouns usually need measure words?

Measure words are needed with numbers, 这/那, 几个, etc., but not always with bare nouns.

Here, 公园 is just “the park” as a general topic, not being counted:

那个城市的公园很安静。
→ Talking about “the park in that city” as a known thing; no number.

But if you want to count or specify one park, you’d use a measure word:

那个城市有一个公园。 – That city has one park.
那个城市的一个公园很安静。 – One (particular) park in that city is very quiet.

Why don’t we say 是 (shì) in 公园很安静? Why not 公园是很安静?

With adjectives as predicates, Chinese usually uses 很 + adjective, without 是:

公园很安静。 – The park is (very) quiet.
他很高。 – He is (very) tall.

Using 是 before an adjective is normally:

wrong or very unnatural in simple descriptive sentences, or
used only in special contrastive/emphatic patterns (e.g. 他是很好，可是… “He is good, but…”)

So the normal pattern is:

[noun] + 很 + [adjective] → “X is (quite) ADJ.”

Does 很 really mean “very” here, or is it sometimes just a grammatical link?

In sentences like 公园很安静, 很 often does not strongly mean “very”. It can be:

a neutral linker between the subject and the adjective, making it sound natural;
or a mild degree (“quite / rather / pretty”).

If you stress it in speech (很安静！ with emphasis), it feels closer to true “very quiet.”
Without special emphasis, English speakers usually just translate:

公园很安静。 → “The park is quiet.”

If you completely remove 很, the sentence can sound strange or overly contrastive.

Can we just say 公园安静 without 很?

In modern spoken Mandarin, 公园安静 as a full sentence sounds:

abrupt, unnatural, or strongly contrastive, like “The park is quiet (as opposed to something else).”

So for a neutral description, you almost always include some degree word, usually:

很安静 – neutral, often translated just “is quiet.”
Other options (depending on nuance): 非常安静 (very quiet), 有点儿安静 (a bit quiet), etc.

Thus, 公园很安静 is the default natural way to say “The park is quiet.”

Is the word order 那个城市的公园 fixed? Could we say 公园在那个城市 instead?

Both are correct, but they have different structures and slightly different focuses.

那个城市的公园很安静。
- Structure: [那个城市的] [公园]
- Literally: “That city’s park is very quiet.”
- Focuses on which park (the one belonging to that city).
那个公园在那个城市，很安静。
- Structure: [那个公园] 在 [那个城市]
- Literally: “That park is in that city, and (it) is very quiet.”
- First tells you the location of the park, then describes it.

For translating “The park in that city is very quiet,” the pattern 那个城市的公园很安静 is the most natural and compact.

Could we drop 的 and say 那个城市公园 instead?

Normally no in everyday speech. You would keep 的:

那个城市的公园 – natural, standard.

Dropping 的 like 城市公园 can happen when:

it’s a fixed term or proper noun, e.g. 北京植物园 (Beijing Botanical Garden), 上海动物园 (Shanghai Zoo);
in headlines / very formal writing.

But in neutral, spoken Mandarin, 那个城市的公园 is the normal way to say “the park in that city.”

What part of speech is 安静 here? Is it an adjective like English “quiet”?

Here 安静 is an adjective meaning “quiet; peaceful.”

As an adjective-predicate:
- 公园很安静。 – The park is quiet.
It can also function as a verb in some contexts:
- 请安静。 – Please be quiet.

In this sentence, though, it’s clearly an adjective describing 公园.

How are 那个 and 的 pronounced in natural speech? Are they full tones?

In natural speech:

那 in 那个 is fourth tone: nà.
个 is normally neutral tone here: ge (not strong gè), so nàge.
的 is also neutral tone: de.

So the whole sentence is:

那(4)个(0) 城(2)市(4) 的(0) 公(1)园(2) 很(3) 安(1)静(4)
(0 = neutral tone)

Note: some speakers in northern areas may pronounce 那个 more like nèige, but nàge with 那 in fourth tone is standard.

If I want to talk about parks (plural) in that city, how do I show the plural in Chinese?

Chinese usually does not mark plural on nouns the way English does. 公园 can mean “park” or “parks” depending on context.

To make the plurality explicit, you use numbers or other words, not a plural ending:

那个城市的公园都很安静。 – The parks in that city are all very quiet.
那个城市有很多公园，都很安静。 – That city has many parks; they are all very quiet.

So the base noun 公园 stays the same whether it’s singular or plural.