the.com/faceplate
The polite mask a machine wears so you don't see its wiring issues.
means A protective or decorative panel that covers the front of a device, machine, or opening, often housing controls, labels, or a switch plate.
from A straightforward compound of 'face' (the front-facing surface) and 'plate' (a flat sheet of metal or other rigid material), both old words in English used in engineering and machining senses since around the 1800s — naming the thing plainly for exactly what it does: a flat plate on the face of something.
- origin
- 1800s term for protective metal covering plates
- car stereos
- removable faceplates deterred theft in the 1990s
- gaming slang
- custom controller shells people swap for flex
- irony
- hides the complexity it's named after facing