pilot vs trial

pilot

verb
  • To test or have a preliminary trial of (an idea, a new product, etc.) 

  • To guide (a vessel) through coastal waters. 

  • To serve as the leading locomotive on a double-headed train. 

  • To control (an aircraft or watercraft). 

noun
  • A person who steers a ship, a helmsman. 

  • A pilot light. 

  • A short plug, sometimes made interchangeable, at the end of a counterbore to guide the tool. 

  • A guide book for maritime navigation. 

  • A racing driver. 

  • An instrument for detecting the compass error. 

  • A person authorised to drive such a vehicle during an escort. 

  • Something serving as a test or trial. 

  • The heading or excavation of relatively small dimensions, first made in the driving of a larger tunnel. 

  • A sample episode of a proposed TV series produced to decide if it should be made or not. If approved, typically the first episode of an actual TV series. 

  • A person who is in charge of the controls of an aircraft. 

  • One who flies a kite. 

  • A cowcatcher. 

  • A person who knows well the depths and currents of a harbor or coastal area, who is hired by a vessel to help navigate the harbor or coast. 

  • A guide or escort through an unknown or dangerous area. 

  • A pilot vehicle. 

adj
  • Being a vehicle to warn other road users of the presence of an oversize vehicle/combination. 

  • Used to control or activate another device. 

  • Made or used as a test or demonstration of capability. 

trial

verb
  • To carry out a series of tests on (a new product, procedure etc.) before marketing or implementing it. 

  • To try out (a new player) in a sports team. 

noun
  • Appearance at judicial court in order to be examined. 

  • A difficult or annoying experience, (especially religion) such an experience seen as a test of faith and piety 

  • A clinical trial, a research study. 

  • A piece of ware used to test the heat of a kiln. 

  • The trial number. 

  • An opportunity to test something out; a test. 

  • A tryout to pick members of a team. 

  • An internal examination set by Eton College. 

adj
  • Attempted on a provisional or experimental basis. 

  • Pertaining to a language form referring to three of something, like people. (See Ambai language for an example.) 

  • Pertaining to a trial or test. 

  • Characterized by having three (usually equivalent) components. 

  • Triple. 

How often have the words pilot and trial occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )