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• test tube
  test tube

  noun

  a hollow cylinder of thin glass with one end closed, used in chemical and biological experimentation and analysis.
• test-tube
  test-tube

  adjective

  produced in or as if in a test tube; synthetic or experimental.

test tube

¹ American  

noun

1. a hollow cylinder of thin glass with one end closed, used in chemical and biological experimentation and analysis.

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test-tube ² American  

[test-toob, -tyoob] / ˈtɛstˌtub, -ˌtyub /

adjective

1. produced in or as if in a test tube; synthetic or experimental.

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test tube British  

noun

1. a cylindrical round-bottomed glass tube open at one end: used in scientific experiments

2. (modifier) made synthetically in, or as if in, a test tube

   a test-tube product

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test tube Scientific  

/ tĕst /

1. A cylindrical tube of clear glass, usually open at one end and rounded at the other, used as a container for small amounts of a substance in laboratory tests and experiments.

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Etymology

Origin of test tube¹

First recorded in 1840–50

Origin of test-tube²

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

It comprised a brick-coloured concoction bubbling away in a test tube.

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2025

You can buy a little extra test tube to help your sorting process by watching about 90 seconds of ads.

From Slate • Dec. 28, 2024

They have shown promise in test tube and animal studies aimed at conditions including heart attacks and wound healing.

From Science Magazine • Mar. 31, 2024

“Sometimes we see effects in the test tube that we don’t necessarily see repeated in animals or humans.”

From National Geographic • Feb. 8, 2024

She had made it with a penny test tube bought at Knipe’s Drug Store.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith