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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

TEST, n. [L. testa, an earthen pot.]
1. In metallurgy, a large cupel, or a vessel in the nature of a cupel, formed of wood ashes and finely powdered brick dust, in which metals are melted for trial and refinement.
2. Trial; examination by the cupel; hence, any critical trial and examination.
Thy virtue, prince, has stood the test of fortune.
Like purest gold--
3. Means of trial.
Each test and every light her muse will bear.
4. That with which any thing is compared for proof of its genuineness; a standard.
--Life, force and beauty must of all impart,
At once the source, the end and test of art.
5. Discriminative characteristic; standard.
Our test excludes your tribe from benefit.
6. Judgment; distinction.
Who would excel, when few can make a test
Betwixt indifferent writing and the best?
7. In chimistry, a substance employed to detect any unknown constituent of a compound, by causing it to exhibit some known property. Thus ammonia is a test of copper, because it strikes a blue color with that metal, by which a minute quantity of it can be discovered when in combination with other substances.
TEST, n. [L. testis, a witness, properly one that affirms.]
In England, an oath and declaration against transubstantiation, which all officers, civil and military, are obliged to take within six months after their admission. They were formerly obliged also to receive the sacrament, according to the usage of the church of England. These requisitions are made by Stat. 25 Charles II. which is called the test act. The test of 7 Jac.1. was removed in 1753.
TEST, v.t. To compare with a standard; to try; to prove the truth or genuineness of any thing by experiment or by some fixed principle or standard; as, to test the soundness of a principle; to test the validity of an argument.
The true way of testing its character, is to suppose it [the system] will be persevered in.
Experience is the surest standard by which to test the real tendency of the existing constitution.
To test this position--
In order to test the correctness of this system--
This expedient has been already tested.
1. To attest and date; as a writing tested on such a day.
2. In metallurgy, to refine gold or silver by means of lead, in a test, by the destruction, vitrification or scarification of all extraneous matter.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: trying something to find out about it; "a sample for ten days free trial"; "a trial of progesterone failed to relieve the pain" [syn: trial, trial run, test, tryout]
2: any standardized procedure for measuring sensitivity or memory or intelligence or aptitude or personality etc; "the test was standardized on a large sample of students" [syn: test, mental test, mental testing, psychometric test]
3: a set of questions or exercises evaluating skill or knowledge; "when the test was stolen the professor had to make a new set of questions" [syn: examination, exam, test]
4: the act of undergoing testing; "he survived the great test of battle"; "candidates must compete in a trial of skill" [syn: test, trial]
5: the act of testing something; "in the experimental trials the amount of carbon was measured separately"; "he called each flip of the coin a new trial" [syn: test, trial, run]
6: a hard outer covering as of some amoebas and sea urchins v
1: put to the test, as for its quality, or give experimental use to; "This approach has been tried with good results"; "Test this recipe" [syn: test, prove, try, try out, examine, essay]
2: test or examine for the presence of disease or infection; "screen the blood for the HIV virus" [syn: screen, test]
3: examine someone's knowledge of something; "The teacher tests us every week"; "We got quizzed on French irregular verbs" [syn: quiz, test]
4: show a certain characteristic when tested; "He tested positive for HIV"
5: achieve a certain score or rating on a test; "She tested high on the LSAT and was admitted to all the good law schools"
6: determine the presence or properties of (a substance)
7: undergo a test; "She doesn't test well"

Merriam Webster's

abbreviation Testament

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, vessel in which metals were assayed, potsherd, from Anglo-French test, tees pot, Latin testum earthen vessel; akin to Latin testa earthen pot, shell Date: 14th century 1. a. chiefly British cupel b. (1) a critical examination, observation, or evaluation ; trial; specifically the procedure of submitting a statement to such conditions or operations as will lead to its proof or disproof or to its acceptance or rejection <a test of a statistical hypothesis> (2) a basis for evaluation ; criterion c. an ordeal or oath required as proof of conformity with a set of beliefs 2. a. a means of testing: as (1) a procedure, reaction, or reagent used to identify or characterize a substance or constituent (2) something (as a series of questions or exercises) for measuring the skill, knowledge, intelligence, capacities, or aptitudes of an individual or group b. a positive result in such a test 3. a result or value determined by testing 4. test match II. adjective Date: 1687 1. of, relating to, or constituting a test 2. subjected to, used for, or revealed by testing <a test group> <test data> III. verb Date: 1748 transitive verb 1. to put to test or proof ; try — often used with out 2. to require a doctrinal oath of intransitive verb 1. a. to undergo a test b. to be assigned a standing or evaluation on the basis of tests <tested positive for cocaine> <the cake tested done> 2. to apply a test as a means of analysis or diagnosis — used with for <test for mechanical aptitude> • testability noun • testable adjective IV. noun Etymology: Latin testa shell Date: circa 1842 an external hard or firm covering (as a shell) of many invertebrates (as a foraminifer or a mollusk)

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. n. & v. --n. 1 a critical examination or trial of a person's or thing's qualities. 2 the means of so examining; a standard for comparison or trial; circumstances suitable for this (success is not a fair test). 3 a minor examination, esp. in school (spelling test). 4 colloq. a test match. 5 a ground of admission or rejection (is excluded by our test). 6 Chem. a reagent or a procedure employed to reveal the presence of another in a compound. 7 Brit. a movable hearth in a reverberating furnace with a cupel used in separating gold or silver from lead. --v.tr. 1 put to the test; make trial of (a person or thing or quality). 2 try severely; tax a person's powers of endurance etc. 3 Chem. examine by means of a reagent. 4 Brit. refine or assay (metal). Phrases and idioms: put to the test cause to undergo a test. Test Act hist. 1 an act in force 1672-1828, requiring all persons before holding office in Britain to take oaths of supremacy and allegiance or an equivalent test. 2 an act of 1871 relaxing conditions for university degrees. test bed equipment for testing aircraft engines before acceptance for general use. test card a still television picture transmitted outside normal programme hours and designed for use in judging the quality and position of the image. test case Law a case setting a precedent for other cases involving the same question of law. test drive a drive taken to determine the qualities of a motor vehicle with a view to its regular use. test-drive v.tr. (past -drove; past part. -driven) drive (a vehicle) for this purpose. test flight a flight during which the performance of an aircraft is tested. test-fly v.tr. (-flies; past -flew; past part. -flown) fly (an aircraft) for this purpose. test match a cricket or Rugby match between teams of certain countries, usu. each of a series in a tour. test meal a meal of specified quantity and composition, eaten to assist tests of gastric secretion. test out put (a theory etc.) to a practical test. test paper 1 a minor examination paper. 2 Chem. a paper impregnated with a substance changing colour under known conditions. test pilot a pilot who test-flies aircraft. test-tube a thin glass tube closed at one end used for chemical tests etc. test-tube baby colloq. a baby conceived by in vitro fertilization. Derivatives: testable adj. testability n. testee n. Etymology: ME f. OF f. L testu(m) earthen pot, collateral form of testa TEST(2) 2. n. the shell of some invertebrates, esp. foraminiferars and tunicates. Etymology: L testa tile, jug, shell, etc.: cf. TEST(1)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Test Test, n. [OE. test test, or cupel, potsherd, F. t[^e]t, from L. testum an earthen vessel; akin to testa a piece of burned clay, an earthen pot, a potsherd, perhaps for tersta, and akin to torrere to patch, terra earth (cf. Thirst, and Terrace), but cf. Zend tasta cup. Cf. Test a shell, Testaceous, Tester a covering, a coin, Testy, T[^e]te-[`a]-t[^e]te.] 1. (Metal.) A cupel or cupelling hearth in which precious metals are melted for trial and refinement. Our ingots, tests, and many mo. --Chaucer. 2. Examination or trial by the cupel; hence, any critical examination or decisive trial; as, to put a man's assertions to a test. ``Bring me to the test.'' --Shak. 3. Means of trial; as, absence is a test of love. Each test every light her muse will bear. --Dryden. 4. That with which anything is compared for proof of its genuineness; a touchstone; a standard. Life, force, and beauty must to all impart, At once the source, and end, and test of art. --Pope. 5. Discriminative characteristic; standard of judgment; ground of admission or exclusion. Our test excludes your tribe from benefit. --Dryden. 6. Judgment; distinction; discrimination. Who would excel, when few can make a test Betwixt indifferent writing and the best? --Dryden. 7. (Chem.) A reaction employed to recognize or distinguish any particular substance or constituent of a compound, as the production of some characteristic precipitate; also, the reagent employed to produce such reaction; thus, the ordinary test for sulphuric acid is the production of a white insoluble precipitate of barium sulphate by means of some soluble barium salt. Test act (Eng. Law), an act of the English Parliament prescribing a form of oath and declaration against transubstantiation, which all officers, civil and military, were formerly obliged to take within six months after their admission to office. They were obliged also to receive the sacrament according to the usage of the Church of England. --Blackstone. Test object (Optics), an object which tests the power or quality of a microscope or telescope, by requiring a certain degree of excellence in the instrument to determine its existence or its peculiar texture or markings. Test paper. (a) (Chem.) Paper prepared for use in testing for certain substances by being saturated with a reagent which changes color in some specific way when acted upon by those substances; thus, litmus paper is turned red by acids, and blue by alkalies, turmeric paper is turned brown by alkalies, etc. (b) (Law) An instrument admitted as a standard or comparison of handwriting in those jurisdictions in which comparison of hands is permitted as a mode of proving handwriting. Test tube. (Chem.) (a) A simple tube of thin glass, closed at one end, for heating solutions and for performing ordinary reactions. (b) A graduated tube. Syn: Criterion; standard; experience; proof; experiment; trial. Usage: Test, Trial. Trial is the wider term; test is a searching and decisive trial. It is derived from the Latin testa (earthen pot), which term was early applied to the fining pot, or crucible, in which metals are melted for trial and refinement. Hence the peculiar force of the word, as indicating a trial or criterion of the most decisive kind. I leave him to your gracious acceptance, whose trial shall better publish his commediation. --Shak. Thy virtue, prince, has stood the test of fortune, Like purest gold, that tortured in the furnace, Comes out more bright, and brings forth all its weight. --Addison.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Test Test, n. [L. testis. Cf. Testament, Testify.] A witness. [Obs.] Prelates and great lords of England, who were for the more surety tests of that deed. --Ld. Berners.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Test Test, v. i. [L. testari. See Testament.] To make a testament, or will. [Obs.]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Test Test, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tested; p. pr. & vb. n. Testing.] 1. (Metal.) To refine, as gold or silver, in a test, or cupel; to subject to cupellation. 2. To put to the proof; to prove the truth, genuineness, or quality of by experiment, or by some principle or standard; to try; as, to test the soundness of a principle; to test the validity of an argument. Experience is the surest standard by which to test the real tendency of the existing constitution. --Washington. 3. (Chem.) To examine or try, as by the use of some reagent; as, to test a solution by litmus paper.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Test Test, Testa Tes"ta, n.; pl. E. Tests, L. Test[ae]. [L. testa a piece of burned clay, a broken piece of earthenware, a shell. See Test a cupel.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) The external hard or firm covering of many invertebrate animals. Note: The test of crustaceans and insects is composed largely of chitin; in mollusks it is composed chiefly of calcium carbonate, and is called the shell. 2. (Bot.) The outer integument of a seed; the episperm, or spermoderm.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(tests, testing, tested) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. When you test something, you try it, for example by touching it or using it for a short time, in order to find out what it is, what condition it is in, or how well it works. The drug must first be tested in clinical trials to see if it works on other cancers. VERB: V n 2. A test is a deliberate action or experiment to find out how well something works. ...the banning of nuclear tests. N-COUNT 3. If you test someone, you ask them questions or tell them to perform certain actions in order to find out how much they know about a subject or how well they are able to do something. There was a time when each teacher spent an hour, one day a week, testing pupils in every subject... She decided to test herself with a training run in London. VERB: V n, V pron-refl 4. A test is a series of questions that you must answer or actions that you must perform in order to show how much you know about a subject or how well you are able to do something. Out of a total of 2,602 pupils only 922 passed the test... She had sold her bike, taken a driving test and bought a car. N-COUNT 5. If you test someone, you deliberately make things difficult for them in order to see how they react. She may be testing her mother to see how much she can take before she throws her out. VERB: V n 6. If an event or situation is a test of a person or thing, it reveals their qualities or effectiveness. It is a commonplace fact that holidays are a major test of any relationship... N-COUNT: usu sing, oft N of n 7. If you are tested for a particular disease or medical condition, you are examined or go through various procedures in order to find out whether you have that disease or condition. My doctor wants me to be tested for diabetes... Girls in an affected family can also be tested to see if they carry the defective gene. VERB: usu passive, be V-ed for n, be V-ed 8. A medical test is an examination of a part of your body in order to check that you are healthy or to find out what is wrong with you. If necessary X-rays and blood tests will also be used to aid diagnosis... N-COUNT 9. A test is a sports match between two international teams, usually in cricket, rugby union, or rugby league. (BRIT) N-COUNT 10. see also testing, acid test, breath test, means test, litmus test, test match 11. If you put something to the test, you find out how useful or effective it is by using it. The Liverpool team are now putting their theory to the test... PHRASE: V inflects 12. If new circumstances or events put something to the test, they put a strain on it and indicate how strong or stable it really is. Sooner or later, life will put the relationship to the test. PHRASE: V inflects 13. If you say that something will stand the test of time, you mean that it is strong or effective enough to last for a very long time. It says a lot for her culinary skills that so many of her recipes have stood the test of time. PHRASE: V inflects 14. to test the waters: see water

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Experiment, trial, proof, ordeal. 2. Criterion, standard, touchstone. 3. Proof, exhibition, example. 4. Discriminative characteristic, ground of admission or exclusion. 5. Judgment, distinction, discrimination. 6. (Chem.) Reagent. II. v. a. 1. Try, prove, subject to trial, put to the proof, experiment upon, make trial of, make an experiment with, give a trial to. 2. Assay.

Moby Thesaurus

Bernreuter personality inventory, Binet-Simon test, Brown personality inventory, Goldstein-Sheerer test, IQ, IQ test, Kent mental test, Minnesota preschool scale, Olympic games, Olympics, Oseretsky test, Pap test, Rorschach test, Stanford revision, Stanford-Binet test, Szondi test, TAT, Wechsler-Bellevue intelligence scale, achievement test, acid test, alpha test, analysis, anatomic diagnosis, apperception test, aptitude test, armor, assay, assess, association test, audit, audition, barometer, beta test, biological diagnosis, biopsy, blank determination, blue book, bout, bring to test, brouillon, canon, catechize, check, check and doublecheck, check out, check over, check up on, chitin, clinical diagnosis, collate, concours, confirm, contest, controlled association test, cortex, criterion, cross-check, crucial test, crucible, cut and try, cut-and-try, cytodiagnosis, degree, demonstrate, derby, determination, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, digital examination, docimasy, double-check, electrocardiography, electroencephalography, electromyography, elytron, empirical, encounter, engagement, episperm, essay, evaluate, evaluation, exam, examen, examination, examine, experiment, experimental, experimentation, feeling out, fight, final, final examination, first draft, free association test, game, games, gauge, give a try, give a tryout, go, graduated scale, great go, gymkhana, have a go, hearing, heuristic, hit-or-miss, honors, inkblot test, intelligence quotient, intelligence test, interest inventory, interrogate, interview, investigation, joust, kiteflying, laboratory diagnosis, lorica, lorication, mail, mammography, match, matching, measure, meet, meeting, mental test, midsemester, midterm, model, norm, oral, oral examination, ordeal, parameter, pattern, pericarp, personality test, physical diagnosis, physical examination, pilot, plate, play around with, postmortem diagnosis, practice upon, prelim, probation, probationary, probative, probatory, probe, proof, protective covering, prove, proving, provisional, psychological test, pump, put to trial, quantity, query, question, quiz, rally, reading, readout, recheck, rencontre, research, road-test, rough draft, rough sketch, rule, run a sample, sample, scale, scute, scutum, serodiagnosis, shake down, shell, shield, smear, sounding out, speculative, standard, standardized test, study, substantiate, take-home examination, taste, tentative, test case, testa, testing, thematic apperception test, thick skin, tilt, touchstone, tournament, tourney, trial, trial-and-error, triple-check, tripos, try, try it on, try out, trying, type, urinalysis, uroscopy, validate, value, verification, verificatory, verify, viva, word association test, work-up, worm out of, written, written examination, yardstick