on trial
Idioms-
In the process of being tried, especially in a court of law. For example, He would be put on trial for the murder of his wife . [Early 1700s]
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As a test of something, on probation, as in They said we could take the vacuum cleaner on trial and return it if it was too noisy . [Early 1700s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Former Assad regime officials have gone on trial in Germany, France and the U.S., but never before have former regime members faced trial inside Syria.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
A former gang leader goes on trial Monday in Las Vegas over the decades-old murder of rapper Tupac Shakur, one of America's most high-profile unresolved murders.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
By the time Blake went on trial, nearly a decade had passed since Simpson’s acquittal for double homicide, but for prosecutors and detectives, the humiliation was fresh.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Mr. Carroll has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to go on trial in August.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
It was Jordan, she reminded them, that had done wrong, and he was the only one on trial.
From "Forged by Fire" by Sharon M. Draper
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
