How to Say ‘Cannot hear clearly’ in Simplified Chinese
听不清
tīng bù qīng
[teeng boo cheeng]
💬 Usage Tip: [听不清] is verb + [不] + result: literally "hear-not-clear," meaning you can't hear clearly. This pattern is very common in Chinese, like [看不懂] "can't understand by reading" or [找不到] "can't find."
Phrase Breakdown
听
tīng
[teeng]
to hear; listen
Refers to using your ears to catch sound or speech.
音乐声太大，我听不清你刚才说什么。
The music is too loud; I couldn’t hear clearly what you just said.
不
bù
[boo]
not; cannot
Placed between a verb and result to show inability, like not being able to do something successfully.
这里太吵了，我听不清你的名字。
It’s too noisy here; I can’t hear your name clearly.
清
qīng
[cheeng]
clear; clearly
Used for things that are distinct and easy to hear, see, or understand.
你再说一遍吧，我刚刚听不清。
Say it again; I didn’t hear clearly just now.
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