trial

[ trahy-uhl, trahyl ]

/ ˈtraɪ əl, traɪl /

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See synonyms for: trial / trials on Thesaurus.com

noun

Law.

the examination before a judicial tribunal of the facts put in issue in a cause, often including issues of law as well as those of fact.
the determination of a person's guilt or innocence by due process of law.

the act of trying, testing, or putting to the proof.

test; proof.

an attempt or effort to do something.

a tentative or experimental action in order to ascertain results; experiment.

the state or position of a person or thing being tried or tested; probation.

subjection to suffering or grievous experiences; a distressed or painful state: comfort in the hour of trial.

an affliction or trouble.

a trying, distressing, or annoying thing or person.

Ceramics. a piece of ceramic material used to try the heat of a kiln and the progress of the firing of its contents.

adjective

of, relating to, or employed in a trial.

done or made by way of trial, proof, or experiment.

used in testing, experimenting, etc.

acting or serving as a sample, experimental specimen, etc.: a trial offer.

SYNONYMS FOR trial

2, 3, 5 examination.

4 endeavor, essay, struggle.

7 grief, tribulation, distress, sorrow, trouble, hardship.

See synonyms for trial on Thesaurus.com

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“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

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Idioms for trial

on trial,

undergoing examination before a judicial tribunal.
undergoing a probationary or trial period.

Origin of trial

First recorded in 1520–30; try + -al²

synonym study for trial

2, 3, 5. Trial , experiment , test imply an attempt to find out something or to find out about something. Trial is the general word for a trying of anything: articles sent for ten days' free trial. Experiment is a trial conducted to prove or illustrate the truth or validity of something, or an attempt to discover something new: an experiment in organic chemistry. Test is a more specific word, referring to a trial under approved and fixed conditions, or a final and decisive trial as a conclusion of past experiments: a test of a new type of airplane. 7. See affliction.

OTHER WORDS FROM trial

in·ter·tri·al, adjectivenon·tri·al, nounpost·tri·al, adjectivere·tri·al, noun

self-trial, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH trial

trail, trial

Words nearby trial

triacylglycerol lipase, triad, triadelphous, triad syndrome, triage, trial, trial and error, trial balance, trial balloon, trial by battle, trial by fire

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

VOCAB BUILDER

What does trial mean?

In general, a trial is a test or an experiment.

Most commonly, the word refers to a criminal trial in a courtroom before a judge and jury. It is also often used in a scientific context to refer to things like clinical trials and drug trials. It can also refer to a hardship. It is commonly used in phrases like trial and error and trial by fire. It is most commonly used as a noun but it can also be used as an adjective and a verb.

Example: There are 500 people participating in our research trial for a new heart medication.

Where does trial come from?

The first records of trial come from the 1500s. It comes from the Anglo-French trier, meaning “to try” (the word try comes from the same term).

In a general sense, a trial of something is a test of it. This sense is seen in the common phrase trial and error, which refers to a process of continually trying or testing something, making mistakes, and trying and testing it again until you get it right. If you decide to test something out for a limited amount of time, you do so with a trial run or during a trial period.

Trial can be used to describe an ordeal or situation that subjects someone to trying times, testing their strength or endurance, as in the expression trials and tribulations. A trial by fire is a test of one’s abilities under pressure.

A trial by jury is also a kind of test, and if you’re the one on trial, you’ll need a trial lawyer. In a scientific context, a clinical trial is an investigation of a new medical treatment to see if it will work in humans. Pharmaceutical trials and drug trials test whether new medicines are safe and effective. Such medicines are said to be in the process of being trialled.

Athletes in certain sports must compete against other athletes in trials in order to qualify for a competition. This sense is seen in phrases like Olympic trial and time trial.

Trial has many other specific meanings but they all deal with testing something, trying something out temporarily, or performing an experiment.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to trial?

intertrial (adjective)
mistrial (noun)
nontrial (noun)
posttrial (adjective)
retrial (noun)

What are some synonyms for trial?

What are some words that share a root or word element with trial?

What are some words that often get used in discussing trial?

How is trial used in real life?

The main uses of trial—legal trials, scientific trials, and personal trials—are usually seen in a serious context.

to whoever stole my umbrella during #jpm18: may your next clinical trial fail to be statistically significant

— Stephanie M. Lee (@stephaniemlee) January 9, 2018

On June 19th, 1999 I got hit by a van while taking a walk. As I lay unconscious in the hospital, the docs debated amputating my right leg and decided it could stay, on a trial basis. I got better. Every day of the 20 years since has been a gift.

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) June 19, 2019

Lady in public lane: you’re very good at swimming you know..

Me: erm, thanks

Lady: no seriously, you should try and do a trial with the county club!

Me: erm, well I actually went to a couple of Olympics..

Lady: me too! Which sports did you get manage to get tickets for?

🤔

— Lizzie Simmonds (@LizzieSimmonds1) March 10, 2018

Try using trial!

True or False?

Trial can only be used as a noun.

Example sentences from the Web for trial

There are about 36,000 digital marketing agencies worldwide, based on our research on platforms like UpCity, Clutch, and our trials and users.
How would an SEO agency be built today? Part 2: Current business model(s)|Sponsored Content: SEOmonitor|September 16, 2020|Search Engine Land
Multiple companies are reporting positive results from their phase 1 trials.
America Is About to Lose Its 200,000th Life to Coronavirus. How Many More Have to Die?|by Stephen Engelberg|September 14, 2020|ProPublica
Prior to the trial, the Financial Conduct Authority said policies held by around 370,000 customers could be affected.
Got interruption insurance? These companies found it’s useless in the age of COVID-19|Bernhard Warner|September 12, 2020|Fortune
AstraZeneca’s clinical trial hold stemmed from adverse events and may well proceed into further clinical development.
The rollercoaster of COVID-19 vaccines|Sy Mukherjee|September 10, 2020|Fortune

We never did a trial that half the people were randomized to get them and half were not.
Wearing a mask could protect you from COVID-19 in more ways than you think|Kat Eschner|September 10, 2020|Popular Science
Meanwhile, almost exactly 30 years after the trial, the judge left his home to board a steamboat and was never heard from again.
New York’s Most Tragic Ghost Loves Minimalist Swedish Fashion|Nina Strochlic|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Seventy-two adults between the ages of 18 and 50 are participating in the trial, led by the pediatrics department at Oxford.
The Race for the Ebola Vaccine|Abby Haglage|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The next phase of the trial consists of vaccinating Ebola workers on the front lines.
The Race for the Ebola Vaccine|Abby Haglage|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He lambasts the case as without evidence, an unfair trial, and damaging for the American reputation.
Of Cuban Spies, a Baby, and a Filmmaker: The Strange Tale of the Cuban Five|Nina Strochlic|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
While in pre-trial detention, Krivov undertook two hunger strikes.
Behind Bars for the Holidays: 11 Political Prisoners We Want to See Free In 2015|Movements.Org|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The challenge was accepted and the hay-wagon driven round and the trial commenced.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
No doubt it will be a trial for Miss Rowan, but I think she would feel better to have her father buried here.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
He consented to the trial, receiving Planner's solemn promise that, in the event of failure, it should be the last.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
British parliament passed an act for transporting Americans to England for trial.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
Receiving small encouragement in England, he applied to sugar-cane planters to give his engines a trial in the West Indies.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2)|Francis Trevithick

British Dictionary definitions for trial (1 of 2)

trial¹

/ (ˈtraɪəl, traɪl) /

noun

the act or an instance of trying or proving; test or experiment
(as modifier)a trial run

law

the judicial examination of the issues in a civil or criminal cause by a competent tribunal and the determination of these issues in accordance with the law of the land
the determination of an accused person's guilt or innocence after hearing evidence for the prosecution and for the accused and the judicial examination of the issues involved
(as modifier)trial proceedings

an effort or attempt to do somethingwe had three trials at the climb

trouble or grief

an annoying or frustrating person or thing

(often plural) a competition for individualssheepdog trials

a motorcycling competition in which the skills of the riders are tested over rough ground

ceramics a piece of sample material used for testing the heat of a kiln and its effects

on trial

undergoing trial, esp before a court of law
being tested, as before a commitment to purchase

verb trials, trialling or trialled

(tr) to test or make experimental use of (something)the idea has been trialled in several schools

Derived forms of trial

trialling, noun

Word Origin for trial

C16: from Anglo-French, from trier to try

British Dictionary definitions for trial (2 of 2)

trial²

/ (ˈtraɪəl) /

noun grammar

a grammatical number occurring in some languages for words in contexts where exactly three of their referents are described or referred to

(modifier) relating to or inflected for this number

Word Origin for trial

C19: from tri- + -al 1

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Idioms and Phrases with trial

trial

In addition to the idioms beginning with trial

trial and error
trial balloon
trial by fire
trials and tribulations

also see:

on trial

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