test vs trial

test

noun
  • An examination, given often during the academic term. 

  • A session in which a product, piece of equipment, or system is examined under everyday or extreme conditions to evaluate its durability, etc. 

  • A challenge, trial. 

  • A Test match. 

  • testosterone 

  • A cupel or cupelling hearth in which precious metals are melted for trial and refinement. 

  • Testa; seed coat. 

  • The external calciferous shell, or endoskeleton, of an echinoderm, e.g. sand dollars and sea urchins. 

verb
  • To examine or try, as by the use of some reagent. 

  • To administer or assign an examination, often given during the academic term, to (somebody). 

  • To place a product or piece of equipment under everyday and/or extreme conditions and examine it for its durability, etc. 

  • To refine (gold, silver, etc.) in a test or cupel; to subject to cupellation. 

  • To be shown to be by test. 

  • To put to the proof; to prove the truth, genuineness, or quality of by experiment, or by some principle or standard; to try. 

  • To challenge. 

trial

noun
  • An internal examination set by Eton College. 

  • 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. 

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. 

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. 

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