Adam appeared to stand on the leg of Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud during Saturday's Premier League clash at the Britannia Stadium, which Stoke won 1-0 thanks to a Jonathan Walters penalty.
The incident was not seen by referee Mike Jones but was caught on camera, and the Football Association have ruled that there is enough evidence to charge the Scotland midfielder.
An FA statement read: "Stoke City's Charlie Adam has today been charged by The FA for violent conduct, following an incident with Arsenal's Olivier Giroud.
"The incident, which was not seen by the match officials but caught on video, occurred during the fixture between the two sides at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday 1 March 2014.
"Adam has until 6pm on Tuesday 4 March 2014 to respond to the charge."
Stoke issued an immediate response, announcing their intention to "vigorously appeal" against the charge.
"The club have learnt within the last hour that the FA have chosen to charge Charlie Adam following an incident involving Olivier Giroud in Saturday's Barclays Premier League game against Arsenal," read a Stoke statement.
"Charlie and the club are surprised and disappointed to learn of this and will appeal vigorously against the decision."
