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WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026tri•al /ˈtraɪəl, traɪl/USA pronunciation
n.
- Lawthe examination of the facts of a case before a court of law, involving hearing evidence and deciding on a person's guilt or innocence: [uncountable]on trial for murder.[countable]He is entitled to a trial before a jury of his peers.
- the act of testing to find out if someone or something is useful, valuable, etc.:[countable]We gave the new worker a trial of six weeks.
- an affliction or trouble;
a troublesome thing or person:[countable]suffering through many trials and tribulations.
adj. [before a noun]
- of or relating to a trial:a trial lawyer.
- done by way of trial or experiment:a trial batch of the new serum.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026tri•al
(trī′əl, trīl),USA pronunciation n.
- [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.
- [Ceram.]a piece of ceramic material used to try the heat of a kiln and the progress of the firing of its contents.
- on trial:
- undergoing examination before a judicial tribunal.
- undergoing a probationary or trial period.
adj. - of, pertaining 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.
2, 3, 5. examination. 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. 4. endeavor, essay, struggle. 7. grief, tribulation, distress, sorrow, trouble, hardship. See affliction.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
trial /ˈtraɪəl; traɪl/ n - the act or an instance of trying or proving; test or experiment
- (as modifier): a trial run
- 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 something: we had three trials at the climb
- trouble or grief
- an annoying or frustrating person or thing
- (often plural) a competition for individuals: sheepdog trials
- a motorcycling competition in which the skills of the riders are tested over rough ground
- 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
vb (trials, trialling, trialled)- (transitive) to test or make experimental use of (something): the idea has been trialled in several schools
Etymology: 16th Century: from Anglo-French, from trier to tryˈtrialling n
'on trial' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
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