CHARADE, noun A composition, in which the subject must be a word of two syllables, each forming a distinct word; and these syllables are to be concealed in an enigmatical description, first separately and then together. Example. My first, when a Frenchman in learning English, serves him to swear by. My second is either hay or corn. My whole is the delight of the age.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI