接待 meaning in English

jiēdài

to receive; to entertain; to host (guests, visitors or clients)

HSK 3verb20 strokes

Meaning of 接待

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

jiēdài
  1. to receive; to entertain; to host (guests, visitors or clients)

How to use 接待

接待 is used when a person, company or office receives and looks after visitors, guests or clients. It often appears in formal or work settings, such as 接待客人 (jiēdài kèrén, to receive guests) or 接待室 (jiēdàishì, reception room). Example: 今天我们要接待一位重要的客户。(Jīntiān wǒmen yào jiēdài yí wèi zhòngyào de kèhù.) Today we are going to host an important client.

接 (jiē) means to meet or take in, and 待 (dài) means to treat someone, as in 等待 (děngdài, to wait). Picture yourself meeting guests at the door and then treating them well: that is 接待.

Common mistake: Learners often confuse 接待 with 接到 (jiēdào). 接到 means to receive a thing like a call or letter, while 接待 means to receive and look after people. Also keep 待 in the fourth tone (dài), and do not write it as the similar-looking 侍 (shì).

接待 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

汽qì车chē旅lǚ馆guǎn可kě以yǐ接jiē待dài多duō达dá400名míng客kè人rén。
The motel can accommodate as many as 400 guests.
这zhè个ge家jiā庭tíng热rè情qíng地dì接jiē待dài了le我wǒ。
The family received me very warmly.
这zhè次cì,虽suī然rán我wǒ的de阅yuè历lì更gèng多duō但dàn是shì没méi有yǒu人rén等děng着zhe接jiē待dài我wǒ。
This time, although I'm more experienced, there's nobody waiting to meet me.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

接 jiē · to receive · 11 strokes

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11

待 dāi · to stay · 9 strokes

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9

Related words

Words that share a character with 接待.

接受jiēshòuto accept (a suggestion, punishment, bribe etc); to acquiesce
直接zhíjiēdirectly; direct
接下来jiē xiàláito accept; to take
接着jiēzheto catch and hold on; to continue
接到jiēdàoto receive (letter etc)
等待děngdàito wait; to wait for
接近jiējìnto approach; to get close to
对待duìdàito treat; treatment
迎接yíngjiēto welcome; to greet
期待qīdàito look forward to; to await
待遇dàiyùtreatment; pay
接触jiēchùto touch; to contact

Questions about 接待

What does 接待 mean?

接待 (jiēdài) means "to receive; to entertain; to host (guests, visitors or clients)" and is used as a verb.

How do you write 接待?

接待 is made of 2 characters: 接 (11 strokes), 待 (9 strokes). That is 20 strokes in total.

Is 接待 an HSK word?

Yes. 接待 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

What is the difference between 接待 and 招待?

Both involve hosting people. 接待 focuses on receiving and handling visitors, often in an official or work role. 招待 (zhāodài) leans more toward entertaining guests with food and drink.

Can 接待 be used as a noun?

Yes, it often works like a noun or modifier, as in 接待工作 (jiēdài gōngzuò, reception work) or 前台接待 (qiántái jiēdài, front desk receptionist). In daily speech it can even refer to the person at reception.