charade
Transparent false front
A charade is a pretense or absurd falsity that everyone recognizes but goes along with: The trial was a charade—the verdict was decided before it began.
In the plural, charades is a party game where players act out words or phrases without speaking while others guess.
The singular sometimes refers to one such acted clue.
Drama through gesture alone
- guessingEstimating without certainty
- actingTemporarily holding position
- gesturesExpressive body movements
- cluesHints toward answers
teams · miming · party · silently · titles · movies · books · phrases
Scornful ridicule or travesty
- travestyAbsurd, degrading imitation
- absurdityWildly illogical quality
- jokeHumorous statement seeking laughter
- shamFraudulent imitation
pantomime · parody · spectacle · hollow · empty · meaningless · futile · pointless
Deceptive outward appearance
- shamFraudulent imitation
- masqueradeDeceptive act or costume party
- guiseExternal manner shown
- pretenseDeceptive outward show
feigning · affectation · disguise · artifice · bluff · imposture · posturing · hypocrisy
Temporarily holding position
- mimingWordless gestural performance
- pantomimeDrama through gesture alone
- gesturesExpressive body movements
- expressionsOutward manifestations of feeling
portrayal · enactment · impersonation · dramatization · exaggeration · theatrical · silent · nonverbal
pantomime
Drama through gesture alone
- guessingEstimating without certainty
- actingTemporarily holding position
- gesturesExpressive body movements
clues · teams · miming · party · silently · titles · movies · books · phrases · timer
mockery
Scornful ridicule or travesty
- travestyAbsurd, degrading imitation
- absurdityWildly illogical quality
- jokeHumorous statement seeking laughter
sham · pantomime · parody · spectacle · hollow · empty · meaningless · futile · pointless · exercise
facade
Deceptive outward appearance
- shamFraudulent imitation
- masqueradeDeceptive act or costume party
- guiseExternal manner shown
pretense · feigning · affectation · disguise · artifice · bluff · imposture · posturing · hypocrisy · insincerity
acting
Temporarily holding position
- mimingWordless gestural performance
- pantomimeDrama through gesture alone
- gesturesExpressive body movements
expressions · portrayal · enactment · impersonation · dramatization · exaggeration · theatrical · silent · nonverbal · body-language
- political theaterkabuki, agitprop, grandstanding, political drama, posturing
- pretend playmake believe, pretend, pretend play, dress-up, dollhouse
- deceptionlie, lies, lying, fake, fraud
- insincerityinsincerity, phoniness, fakeness, falseness, pretense
- pretendingpretend, pretending, fake, feign, make-believe
- Social Pretensepretense, facade, affectation, phoniness, insincerity
charadegenuineness
Quality of being real
authenticity · sincerity · reality · truth · honesty
charadefrankness
Direct, unguarded honesty
candor · forthrightness · directness · straightforwardness · plainspokenness