hậu đài
Definition
- Noun:
- Backstage (in a theater): The area behind the stage, including wings and dressing rooms, not visible to the audience, where performers prepare and stagehands work.
- Backing / Support (figurative): A person or group with power and influence who provides crucial, often behind-the-scenes, support or protection for someone else.
Usage Examples
Noun (literal):
- Diễn viên đang chờ ở hậu đài. (The actor is waiting backstage.)
- Âm thanh từ hậu đài vọng ra. (The sound from backstage echoed out.)
Noun (figurative):
- Anh ta làm ăn thế nào cũng được vì có hậu đài vững chắc. (He can do business any way he wants because he has solid backing.)
- Vụ án đó bị bưng bít do có nhiều hậu đài. (That case was covered up because it involved many powerful supporters.)
Advanced Usage
- The figurative usage is common in social, political, and business contexts to imply unofficial patronage or protection from a powerful entity.
Variants and Related Words
- Hậu trường (n): Backstage; behind the scenes. Often used interchangeably with "hậu đài" in the literal sense but more commonly for the figurative meaning of "the inside story" or "behind-the-scenes" affairs.
- Phóng viên điều tra hậu trường vụ tham nhũng. (The journalist investigated the behind-the-scenes story of the corruption case.)
Synonyms
- Backstage: The area behind a theater stage.
- Patron: A person who gives financial or other support.
- Backer: A person, institution, or country that supports someone or something, especially financially.
Related Idioms
- Có hậu đài / Có hậu thuẫn: To have backing/support. This is the most common idiomatic phrase.
- Công ty nhỏ đó cạnh tranh được là nhờ có hậu đài. (That small company can compete because it has powerful backing.)