charade

noun cha·rade \ shə-ˈrād , -ˈräd \

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

1 : a word represented in riddling verse or by picture, tableau, or dramatic action (such as intrusion represented by depiction of inn, true, and shun)

2 charades plural : a game in which some of the players try to guess a word or phrase from the actions of another player who may not speak

3 : an empty or deceptive act or pretense

his concern was a charade

See charade defined for English-language learners

See charade defined for kids

Examples of charade in a Sentence

We've grown tired of your charades.
put on a convincing charade to keep her from knowing about the surprise party

Recent Examples of charade from the Web

The entire charade will likely continue on for some time, if not indefinitely, and the exact operational logistics behind Lil Miquela’s account may never become clear.

— miranda katz, WIRED, "CGI ‘Influencers’ Like Lil Miquela Are About to Flood Your Feeds," 1 May 2018
Same-day registration makes a charade out of the seriousness of electing our representatives there and also of the debates our citizens have in weighing ballot questions.

— BostonGlobe.com, "Should Massachusetts institute same-day voter registration?," 23 Mar. 2018
All three are accused of keeping up the charade of a legitimate medical practice.

— ben brasch, ajc, "Cobb DA: Docs, fake nurse face 90 charges for illegal medical practice," 1 May 2018
Maybe Trump understands the economic disruption that would cause, particularly to farmers who voted for him, so the whole thing is a charade.

— steve lopez, latimes.com, "Pro- and anti-Trump forces score points on immigration, but both sides are losing," 25 Apr. 2018
Both funds effectively went belly up after Shkreli's purported stock picking acumen turned out to be a charade.

— Washington Post, "The Health 202: Under Trump, immigrants back away from Medicaid, Obamacare subsidies," 11 Apr. 2018
The imbalanced economics of the game compelled them to follow through with the charade of sending Ronald Acuña to the minors for a few weeks.

— michael beller, SI.com, "The Braves Should Consider Keeping Mike Soroka in the Rotation," 3 May 2018
To Cosby, Cliff and Clair Huxtable were just a charade.

— dahleen glanton, chicagotribune.com, "African-American families say ‘good riddance’ to Bill Cosby," 27 Apr. 2018
Keep the fun going by planning a scavenger hunt around the house or playing charades by flashlight.

— mali anderson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Ideas for celebrating Halloween with kids: From the not-so-scary to the downright spooky," 16 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'charade.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of charade

French, from Occitan charrado chat, from charrá to chat, chatter

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1776

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

charade Synonyms

Other Game Terms

bezique, carom, convention, crap, euchre, gambit, monte, parlay, tierce

CHARADE Defined for English Language Learners

charade

noun

: something that is done in order to pretend something is true when it is not really true
charades : a game in which players try to guess a word or phrase from the actions of another player who is not allowed to speak