Historical reference: Do not rely on this information. It is very old. About this collection
Charade (either from a French dialect-word meaning to chatter, or from a Spanish word for clown), a name applied (1) to a word given to be guessed, the indication being given by some description of the meaning of each component syllable separately; (2) to a sort of improvised drama, the name of which is to be guessed from the action of the performers.