dumbbell

noun

Etymology: From dumb (“silent”) + bell (“a resonating instrument”). The term "dumbbell" originated in 16th-century England to describe silent exercise apparatus used in practicing the motions of ringing church bells noiselessly. To aid them in the practice of their physically demanding vocation, bellringers originally used weighted ropes on fixed pulleys to mimic the motion of ringing a church bell; since such apparatus made no noise while imitating the motion of ringing a swinging bell via a fixed pulley, they were called "dumb bells". Later, the rope-and-pulley weights evolved into simple hand-held weights used by ringers for strengthening the shoulder and back muscles heavily used in tower bellringing, and the term "'dumb bell'" evolved into the compound word "'dumbbell'".

1. A weight training implement consisting of a short bar with weight counterpoised on each end.

   “He was exercising with the dumbbells in gym class today.”

   “He also had a room strewn with the toys of the trade and what-have-you: ropes and ironmongery, buoyancy aid and bagpipes, fetid socks and half-eaten haggises, dumbbells and ski-instructor sweaters.”

2. A bell with no clapper, used as bell-striking practice or to strike as a form of physical exercise
3. A stupid person.

   “That's fool's gold, you dumbbell. Iron pyrite. Nobody would give you a dime for a ton of it.”