China about to tip over, making loud noise (4)
I believe the answer is:
clap
'loud noise' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'china about to tip over' is the wordplay.
'china' becomes 'pal' (I've seen this before).
'about' becomes 'c' (abbreviation for 'circa').
'to tip over' says the letters should be written in reverse (I've seen 'tipped over' mean this).
'pal'+'c'='palc'
'palc' in reverse letter order is 'CLAP'.
'making' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for clap that I've seen before include "A meeting of hands" , "Pat" , "Audibly show approval" , "Sudden loud noise (of thunder?)" , "Express approbation with the hands" .)