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charades

British

/ ʃəˈrɑːdz /

noun

(functioning as singular) a parlour game in which one team acts out each syllable of a word, the other team having to guess the word

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of charades

C18: from French charade entertainment, from Provençal charrado chat, from charra chatter, of imitative origin

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In playing charades with our friends, for example, we aim to prevail, but only in fun.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

"We divided attendees into groom and bride's teams and organised games like charades and guessing who the relative is from a stereotype," said CEO Anurag Pandey.

From BBC • Aug. 3, 2025

Writer and performer Sandra Tsing Loh had the honors Sunday, and she gamely followed the script’s instructions as though presiding over an evening of charades that an oracle had dreamed up in advance.

From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2025

Hitler ran a regime that engaged in elaborate charades to bamboozle sympathetic and influential foreigners about the nature of the Nazi state.

From Salon • Sep. 21, 2024

“I’m glad you’re being honest with me; I’ll be honest with you; no more charades between us,” the Count said, putting down a number of notebooks and quill pens and ink bottles.

From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023