cha ‧ rade /ʃəˈrɑːd $ ʃəˈreɪd/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 1700-1800 ; Language: French ; Origin: Provençal charrado 'conversation' ]
1 . charades [uncountable] a game in which one person uses actions and no words to show the meaning of a word or phrase, and other people have to guess what it is
2 . [countable] a situation in which people behave as though something is true or serious, when it is not really true:
Unless more money is given to schools, all this talk of improving education is just a charade.