Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Games A game in which words or phrases are represented in pantomime, sometimes syllable by syllable, until they are guessed by the other players.
- n. Games An episode in this game or a word or phrase so represented.
- n. A readily perceived pretense; a travesty: went through the charade of a public apology.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. An enigma whose solution is a word of two or more syllables, each of which is separately significant in sound, and which, as well as the whole word, must be discovered from a dialogue or description in which it is used, or from dramatic representation.
Wiktionary
- n. A specific kind of riddle in which a word or phrase to find is split in several parts that can each be guessed from a verbal clue.
- n. in plural A party game in which players mime a word or phrase that the other players must try to guess.
- n. Something apparently real but based on pretence/pretense.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A verbal or acted enigma based upon a word which has two or more significant syllables or parts, each of which, as well as the word itself, is to be guessed from the descriptions or representations.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a word acted out in an episode of the game of charades
- n. a composition that imitates or misrepresents somebody's style, usually in a humorous way
Etymologies
- From French charade, of disputed origin. (Wiktionary)
- French, probably from Provençal charrado, chat, from charra, to chat, chatter, perhaps from Italian ciarlare. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Taylor boycotted the opening day of the trial, which he called a charade in a letter read by his defense attorney.”
“Although MEND said it did not take part in the amnesty - which it described as charade - most of its top commanders laid down arms.”
“Just pointing out again that your charade is sort of bizarre and abnormal as far as normal adult behavior goes …”
“The true charade is holding people in detention for years with no indictment and no trial.”
“To me this whole debacle would be solved by having fixed term parliaments, because this whole 'will he, wont he' charade is tiresome.”
“The real point of this charade is to allow allow the left and the government approved media to put the Bush administration on trial.”
“Bozo The Neoclown says: the whole “sceond amendment rights” charade is the oldest “red meat” trick of cancervatards. ranks right up there with abortion in terms of being a falshpoint issue. and these ignorant maroons fall for it every freakin time.”
Think Progress » Gun Advocates Plan DC March On 15th Anniversary Of Oklahoma City Bombing
“Their silly charade is over after the disastrous Teabagging festival, which showed that they are incapable of being a viable organization, even with the massive backing of the financial and big oil corporations.”
“I hope you know that many of us recognize that this little charade is simply subconscious racism.”
The Volokh Conspiracy » Radio Debate on the Constitutionality of the Health Care Bill
“NO WAY NO HOW ........ as soon as this charade is over and the boys are done pouncing on Hillary I am changing my registration to INDEPENDENT.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘charade’.
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This is not a list
you know that thing where the Eskimos have 50 words for snow?
little white lie, big lie, the Big Lie, economical with t..., muddy the waters, fabrication, deception, lies, damned lies..., façade, slander, omission, web of lies and 159 more...
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A-R-A Words
It's an odd-looking pattern in English. Please add words if it makes you happy. :) K-POW! Wow @gulyasrobi!
scarab, Arawak, Sahara, Arab, pharaoh, caravan, carat, parachute, arachnid, Saran Wrap, Sarah, tarantella and 492 more...
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important
shamanism, consol, sanguine, iffy, affinity, concatenation, honed, innumberable, aiden, inexorable, vet, suss and 176 more...
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®emovies
Movies or TV shows where the titles are also common words, generally one-word titles.
lost, alien, bug, elephant, siege, gladiator, flock, captivity, piano, roots, freaks, moonstruck and 269 more...
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Words that are also movies
Unabashedly stolen from a comment made by courier12.
vertigo, serendipity, casablanca, psycho, jaws, fantasia, stagecoach, network, rocky, giant, platoon, unforgiven and 285 more...
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Brand Theft Auto
A marque list for cars--models or companies who've used common words as their name.
explorer, navigator, frontier, mustang, quest, cougar, sidekick, legend, legacy, ranger, voyager, civic and 266 more...
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2nd part
prelude, ample, escalate, prototype, accession, acquisition, archives, zealot, indict, verdict, intimidating, timid and 454 more...
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kahleigh's list
therapeutic, charade, chalice, rendezvous, amarulence, bewitched, transcendence, passe, cul-de-sac, boulevard, bouquet, forlorn and 18 more...
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Hiding in plain sight
anticryptic, camouflage, chameleon, xenomorphic, obfusc, stegnographic, stealth, dissemble, dissimulate, mask, masquerade, screen and 27 more...
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capitalcreative's Words
deviltry, visceral, cassanova, assuage, genesis, hot minute, osmosis, wistful, sublime, loathe, farfetched, newfangled and 283 more...
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eggplantia5's Words
scintillate, marvel, cranberry, oscillate, triumph, bamboozle, grimace, magical, book, hexagon, cipher, compendium and 2727 more...
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SoSheShall's list
slurp, coeur, slurple, glop, perp, fluarxx, ropechno, herrherr, burrduhherrherr, sloppy, cheezie balls, eccentric and 634 more...
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What Do You Mean $
ahh these hurt.....
hermit, prone, maxim, guise, solvenly, lurid, lax, amiable, irate, cloister, mediate, nettle and 100 more...
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everythingecstatic's Words
cadence, frenetic, eloquence, paradigm, nocturne, elusive, effervescence, soliloquy, plethora, elision, aqueous, transcend and 166 more...
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parody's Words
defenestrate, behemoth, floss, macchiato, glom, emu, alpaca, crocheted, ampersand, charade, conflate, salacious and 193 more...
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Onomatopoetics
Words formed in imitation of a natural sound.
bumble-bee, rat-a-tat, blurt, clink, chickadee, rub-a-dub, chirr, chug, keck, flim-flam, brekekekex, thunk and 94 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for charade.
bilby Teddy Roosevelt is on the hustings in 1906, being interviewed by a journalist via telegraph -
TR: I've just coined a new word to describe journalists like you. 'Muckraker'! How do you like them apples! So print this. I've heard I'm going to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Now aint that swell!
Journalist: Charade. Jan 21, 2013
hernesheir US Railway Association, Standard Cipher Code, 1906: "Are you certain?" in railroad telegraphers' shorthand. Jan 21, 2013
oroboros In wordplay, the concatenation of words to form another word: e.g., the & rein--> therein.
--Chris Cole, Wordplay May 22, 2008