Suara itu menyebalkan.

Suara is a broad word. It can mean voice, sound, or sometimes noise, depending on context.

In Suara itu menyebalkan, it most naturally means that sound or that voice.
For example:

• suara musik itu = that music sound / the sound of that music
• suara orang itu = that person’s voice

So the exact English translation depends on what kind of suara the speaker is talking about.

Itu usually means that. So suara itu literally means that sound or that voice.

In natural Indonesian, itu after a noun can also feel a bit like the in English when referring to something already known in the conversation. So depending on context, suara itu could be understood as:

• that sound
• that voice
• the sound
• the voice

But the basic literal value of itu is that.

In Indonesian, demonstratives like ini (this) and itu (that) usually come after the noun:

• rumah itu = that house
• orang ini = this person
• suara itu = that sound/voice

This is normal Indonesian word order, even though it is different from English.

In this sentence, menyebalkan functions like a predicate adjective in English, meaning annoying or irritating.

So:

• Suara itu menyebalkan. = That sound is annoying.

Even though it may look verb-like because of the meN-...-kan form, words like menyebalkan are very commonly used in predicate position to describe something’s effect on people.

Menyebalkan comes from the root sebal, which describes a feeling of being annoyed, fed up, or irritated.

The pattern is roughly:

• sebal = annoyed / irritated
• menyebalkan = to make someone annoyed; annoying

So menyebalkan literally has the idea of causing annoyance.

This is because of the meN- prefix, which changes shape depending on the first sound of the root.

The root is sebal. When meN- is added to a root beginning with s, the s usually disappears and meN- becomes meny-:

• sebar → menyebar
• sapu → menyapu
• sebal → menyebalkan

So menyebalkan is the expected form.

It can relate to both ideas, depending on the sentence.

In Suara itu menyebalkan, it means annoying:

• That sound is annoying.

In other contexts, it can have a more verbal sense, closer to annoys or is annoying to someone:

• Perilakunya menyebalkan saya. = His behavior annoys me.
  (This kind of structure is possible, though speakers often express it in other ways too.)

So here, the best understanding is simply annoying.

No, that would sound unnatural in standard Indonesian.

Sebal describes the feeling of the person who is annoyed, not the thing causing it. So:

• Saya sebal. = I’m annoyed / fed up.
• Suara itu menyebalkan. = That sound is annoying.

The sound causes the feeling; the person experiences sebal.

Both menyebalkan and menjengkelkan can mean annoying or irritating.

A rough comparison:

• menyebalkan = annoying, irritating, making you fed up
• menjengkelkan = annoying, exasperating, getting on your nerves

In many situations, they overlap a lot. Menyebalkan is very common in everyday speech and often feels a bit conversational. Menjengkelkan can sound slightly more formal or strong, depending on context.

In a sense, yes. Indonesian often does not need a word equivalent to is/are in simple descriptive sentences.

So:

• Suara itu menyebalkan.
  literally looks like
• That sound annoying.

But the natural English meaning is:

• That sound is annoying.

You do not need adalah here. In fact, adalah would usually sound less natural in an everyday sentence like this.

Use tidak before menyebalkan:

• Suara itu tidak menyebalkan. = That sound is not annoying.

You would not normally use bukan here, because menyebalkan is not a noun phrase.
So:

• tidak menyebalkan = not annoying

A natural yes/no question is:

• Apakah suara itu menyebalkan?

In casual speech, people often just use intonation:

• Suara itu menyebalkan?

Both can work, but apakah is clearer for learners and more explicitly marks a question.

Suara is pronounced approximately soo-AH-rah.

A few notes:

• su sounds like soo
• a is usually a clear ah
• the r is typically tapped or lightly rolled in Indonesian

So suara itu menyebalkan is roughly:

soo-AH-rah EE-too men-nyeh-BAL-kan

The ny in menyebalkan sounds like the ny in canyon.

Yes. Suara can absolutely refer to a person’s voice.

So Suara itu menyebalkan could mean:

• That voice is annoying.
• That sound is annoying.

Context tells you which one is meant. If people are talking about someone speaking, voice is likely. If they are talking about a noise, sound is more likely.

It is neutral and very natural in everyday Indonesian.

• suara = common everyday word
• itu = basic demonstrative
• menyebalkan = common everyday adjective/predicate

So the sentence works well in ordinary conversation. It is not especially formal, but it is also not slang.