trial
A meeting in court where a judge and sometimes a jury decide if someone did something wrong.
A formal examination of evidence in a court of law to determine whether someone is guilty of a crime or liable in a civil case.
A short time to try something to see if it works well.
A test or experiment to assess the quality, performance, or suitability of something before it is fully adopted or used.
A hard time that tests your strength or patience.
A situation or experience that is difficult and tests a person's patience, strength, or character.
- Base: trial
- Plural: trial, trials
on trial
1Being judged in court
In the process of having a court decide if you did something wrong.
- The politician is on trial for corruption.
- She has been on trial since last month.
put on trial
1Begin court process against someone
To make someone go to court to decide if they are guilty.
- The activist was put on trial for leading protests.
- He was put on trial after the investigation ended.
stand trial
1Appear in court for charges
To go to court to be judged for a crime.
- He will stand trial for theft next month.
- Many refused to stand trial and fled the country.
trial run
1Short test before full use
A short test to see if something works well before using it fully.
- We did a trial run of the presentation yesterday.
- The new train had its first trial run this morning.
trial and error
1Learning by trying and failing
A way to solve problems by trying different things and learning from mistakes until you find what works.
- Learning to cook often involves trial and error.
- We learned to fix the engine through trial and error.
- We found the best design through trial and error.
- Cooking well often comes from trial and error.
trial and error
2Problem-solving by repeated attempts
Trying many times and learning from mistakes until you find the right way.
- We learned how to fix the machine through trial and error.
- Cooking without a recipe is often trial and error.