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charade

 - 4 dictionary results

cha⋅rade

  [shuh-reyd; especially Brit. shuh-rahd]
Use charade in a Sentence
–noun
1. charades, (used with a singular verb) a game in which the players are typically divided into two teams, members of which take turns at acting out in pantomime a word, phrase, title, etc., which the members of their own team must guess.
2. a word or phrase acted out in this game.
3. a blatant pretense or deception, esp. something so full of pretense as to be a travesty.
Origin:
1770–80; < F < Pr charrad(o) entertainment, equiv. to charr(á) to chat, chatter (from imit. root) + -ado -ade 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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cha·rade   (shə-rād')   
n.  

  1. Games

    1. charades (used with a sing. or pl. verb) A game in which words or phrases are represented in pantomime, sometimes syllable by syllable, until they are guessed by the other players.

    2. An episode in this game or a word or phrase so represented.

  2. A readily perceived pretense; a travesty: went through the charade of a public apology.


[French, probably from Provençal charrado, chat, from charra, to chat, chatter, perhaps from Italian ciarlare.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

charade 
1776, from Fr. charade, from Prov. charrada "long talk, chatter," of obscure origin, perhaps from charrar "to chatter, gossip," of echoic origin. Originally not silent, merely relying on enigmatic descriptions of the words or syllables; the silent form was dumb charades. Welsh siarad obviously is a loan-word from Fr. or Eng., but its meaning of "speak, a talk" is closer to the Prov. original.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

charade

originally a kind of riddle, probably invented in France during the 18th century, in which a word or phrase is divined by guessing and combining its different syllables, each of which is described independently by the giver of the charade. Charades may be given in prose or verse. The following is an example of a poetic charade:My first is a Tartar,My second a letter;My all is a country,No Christmas dish better.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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