trial balloon

noun

1. a statement, program, or the like issued publicly as a means of determining reactions in advance.

   The speech was a trial balloon for a new law.

trial balloon

noun

1. a tentative action or statement designed to test public opinion on a controversial matter Compare ballon d'essai

trial balloon

1. A small campaign or test designed to gauge public response. The term originally referred to a balloon sent up to determine weather conditions: “The speech on free trade that the candidate delivered last month must have been a trial balloon; the audience reacted with hostility, and he has not mentioned the subject since.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of trial balloon¹

First recorded in 1930–35

Idioms and Phrases

An idea or plan advanced tentatively to test public reaction, as in Let's send up a trial balloon for this new program before we commit ourselves. This expression alludes to sending up balloons to test weather conditions. [c. 1930]