dummy

¹dum·my

noun \ˈdə-mē\

plural dummies

Definition of DUMMY

1

a : a person who is incapable of speaking

b : a person who is habitually silent

c : a stupid person

2

a : the exposed hand in bridge played by the declarer in addition to his or her own hand

b : a bridge player whose hand is a dummy

3

: an imitation, copy, or likeness of something used as a substitute: as

a : mannequin

b : a stuffed figure or cylindrical bag used by football players for tackling and blocking practice

c : a large puppet usually having movable features (as mouth and arms) manipulated by a ventriloquist

d chiefly British : pacifier 2

4

: one seeming to act independently but in reality controlled by another

5

a : a mock-up of a proposed publication (as a book or magazine)

b : a set of pages (as for a newspaper or magazine) with the position of text and artwork indicated for the printer

Examples of DUMMY

1. She loves you, you dummy.
2. They practiced CPR on a dummy.
3. The bomb was just a dummy.

Origin of DUMMY

¹dumb + ⁴-y

First Known Use: 1598

Related to DUMMY

Synonyms

airhead, birdbrain, blockhead, bonehead, bubblehead, chowderhead, chucklehead, clodpoll (or clodpole), clot [British], cluck, clunk, cretin, cuddy (or cuddie) [British dialect], deadhead, dim bulb [slang], dimwit, dip, dodo, dolt, donkey, doofus [slang], dope, dork [slang], dullard, dumbbell, dumbhead, dum-dum, dummkopf, idiot, dunce, dunderhead, fathead, gander, golem, goof, goon, half-wit, hammerhead, hardhead, ignoramus, imbecile, jackass, know-nothing, knucklehead, lamebrain, loggerhead [chiefly dialect], loon, lump, lunkhead, meathead, mome [archaic], moron, mug [chiefly British], mutt, natural, nimrod [slang], nincompoop, ninny, ninnyhammer, nit [chiefly British], nitwit, noddy, noodle, numskull (or numbskull), oaf, pinhead, prat [British], ratbag [chiefly Australian], saphead, schlub (also shlub) [slang], schnook [slang], simpleton, stock, stupe, stupid, thickhead, turkey, woodenhead, yahoo, yo-yo

Antonyms

brain, genius

Related Words

booby, buffoon, fool, goose, loony, lunatic, madman, nut, zany; loser; gawk; featherbrain, scatterbrain; beast, boor, cad, churl, clown, creep, cur, heel, jerk, skunk, snake, stinker, villain; bimbette [slang], bimbo [slang], himbo

Near Antonyms

egghead, intellect, intellectual, sage, thinker, whiz, wizard; polymath, Renaissance man; sharpie (or sharpy)

Rhymes with DUMMY

chummy, crummie, crummy, gummy, mommy, mummy, plummy, rummy, scummy, slummy, tummy, yummy

²dummy

adjective

Definition of DUMMY

1

a : having the appearance of being real : artificial <dummy foods in the display case>

b : existing in name only : fictitious <dummy corporations>

2

: apparently acting for oneself while really acting for or at the direction of another <a dummy director>

Examples of DUMMY

1. They took apart a dummy bomb.
2. <the dummy shutters on the house are actually made of vinyl and are for decoration only>

First Known Use of DUMMY

1846

Related to DUMMY

Synonyms

artificial, bogus, imitation, ersatz, factitious, fake, false, faux, imitative, man-made, mimic, mock, pretend, sham, simulated, substitute, synthetic

Antonyms

genuine, natural, real

Related Words

cultured, manufactured, process; unauthentic; adulterated, designer, doctored, engineered, fudged, juggled, manipulated, tampered (with); concocted, fabricated; counterfeit, deceptive, forged, fraudulent, misleading, phony (also phoney); affected, brummagem, feigned, pinchbeck, pseudo, spurious

Near Antonyms

authentic, bona fide, legitimate, true; premium, quality, valuable; pure, unadulterated

Rhymes with DUMMY

rummy

³dummy

transitive verb

dum·mieddum·my·ing

Definition of DUMMY

: to make a dummy of (as a publication) —often used with up <dummied up the front page>

First Known Use of DUMMY

circa 1928