前台 qiántái stage
stage; proscenium; foreground in politics etc (sometimes derog.); front desk; reception desk; (computing) front-end; foreground
How to remember 前台: 前 in front + 台 platform = stage.
Characters
How it is used
- The reception/front desk of a hotel, office, clinic - 到前台办理入住 (dào qiántái bànlǐ rùzhù) check in at the front desk.
- Also 'front-of-house / on stage / in the public eye' vs 后台 (backstage, behind the scenes); and in computing, the front-end/foreground.
- The 前台/后台 pair is the key contrast: visible/public vs hidden/behind.