起初我聽不懂他說的話。

I couldn't understand him at first.

Source: Tatoeba

Sentence Composition

1 起初 qǐchū originally; at first; at the outset
2 我 wǒ
  1. I
  2. me
  3. my
=3 聽不懂 tīngbudǒng unable to make sense of what one is hearing
=3 聽不懂 tīngbùdǒng to not understand (when listening)
4 他 tā
  1. (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his
  2. (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日 tārì and 他人 tārén)
=5 說 shuì to persuade
=5 說 shuō
  1. to speak; to talk; to say
  2. to explain; to comment
  3. to scold; to tell off
  4. (bound form) theory; doctrine
=5 說 yuè
  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of 悅 /悦 (yuè, “happy; delighted”)
  2. alternative form of 悅 /悦 (yuè, “happy; delighted”)
=5 說 tuō
  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of 脫 /脱 (“to free; to relieve”)
  2. alternative form of 脫 /脱 (“to free; to relieve”)
6 的話 dehuà if (coming after a conditional clause)