Chuck gets past the entrance hall (5)
I believe the answer is:
lobby
'the entrance hall' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'chuck gets past' is the wordplay.
'chuck' becomes 'lob' (I've seen this before).
'gets' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'past' becomes 'by' (as in years gone by).
'lob'+'by'='LOBBY'
(Other definitions for lobby that I've seen before include "Antechamber" , "Small hall" , "Press" , "Group seeking influence" , "Attempt to influence" .)