Test Definition | Definition of Test at Dictionary.com

test

1 [test]

–noun

1.	the means by which the presence, quality, or genuineness of anything is determined; a means of trial.

2.	the trial of the quality of something: to put to the test.

3.	a particular process or method for trying or assessing.

4.	a set of questions, problems, or the like, used as a means of evaluating the abilities, aptitudes, skills, or performance of an individual or group; examination.

5.	Psychology. a set of standardized questions, problems, or tasks designed to elicit responses for use in measuring the traits, capacities, or achievements of an individual.

Chemistry.

a.	the process of identifying or detecting the presence of a constituent of a substance, or of determining the nature of a substance, commonly by the addition of a reagent.

b.	the reagent used.

c.	an indication or evidence of the presence of a constituent, or of the nature of a substance, obtained by such means.

7.	an oath or other confirmation of one's loyalty, religious beliefs, etc.

8.	British. a cupel for refining or assaying metals.

–verb (used with object)

9.	to subject to a test of any kind; try.

10.	Chemistry. to subject to a chemical test.

11.	Metallurgy. to assay or refine in a cupel.

–verb (used without object)

12.	to undergo a test or trial; try out.

13.	to perform on a test: People test better in a relaxed environment.

14.	to conduct a test: to test for diabetes.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME: cupel < MF < L testū, testum earthen pot; akin to test ²

Related forms:

test⋅a⋅ble, adjective

test⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun

test⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. proof, assay. See trial. 9. assay, prove, examine.

test

2 [test]

–noun

1.	Zoology. the hard, protective shell or covering of certain invertebrates, as echinoderms or tunicates.

2.	Botany. testa.

Origin:
1535–45; < L testa tile, shell, covering; akin to test ¹

Test.

Testament.

test.

testator.

2.	testimony.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To test

test¹ (těst)

A procedure for critical evaluation; a means of determining the presence, quality, or truth of something; a trial: a test of one's eyesight; subjecting a hypothesis to a test; a test of an athlete's endurance.
A series of questions, problems, or physical responses designed to determine knowledge, intelligence, or ability.
A basis for evaluation or judgment: "A test of democratic government is how Congress and the president work together" (Haynes Johnson).
Chemistry
1. A physical or chemical change by which a substance may be detected or its properties ascertained.
2. A reagent used to cause or promote such a change.
3. A positive result obtained.
A cupel.

v. test·ed, test·ing, tests

v. tr.

To subject to a test; try: tested the pen by scribbling on scrap paper; testing job applicants.
1. To determine the presence or properties of (a substance).
2. To assay (metal) in a cupel.

v. intr.

To undergo a test.
To administer a test: test for acid content; test for the presence of an antibody.
To achieve a score or rating on tests: tested high on the entrance exams.
To exhibit a given characteristic when subjected to a test: test positive for the tubercle bacillus.

[Middle English, cupel, from Old French, pot, from Latin testū, testum.]
test'a·bil'i·ty n., test'a·ble adj.

test² (těst)

n. A hard external covering, as that of certain amoebas, dinoflagellates, and sea urchins.

[Latin testa, shell.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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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.

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.

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.

Test

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

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.

Language Translation for : test

Spanish: prueba, examen, test,

German: die Prüfung,

Japanese: テスト

More Translations »

test

n.
1. Real users bashing on a prototype long enough to get thoroughly acquainted with it, with careful monitoring and followup of the results.
2. Some bored random user trying a couple of the simpler features with a developer looking over his or her shoulder, ready to pounce on mistakes. Judging by the quality of most software, the second definition is far more prevalent. See also demo.

Jargon File 4.2.0
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test (n.)

c.1386, "small vessel used in assaying precious metals," from O.Fr. test, from L. testum "earthen pot," related to testa "piece of burned clay, earthen pot, shell" (cf. L. testudo "tortoise") and textere "to weave" (cf. Lith. tistas "vessel made of willow twigs;" see texture). Sense of "trial or examination to determine the correctness of something" is recorded from 1594. The verb in this sense is from 1748. The connecting notion is "ascertaining the quality of a metal by melting it in a pot." Test-tube is from 1846; test-tube baby is recorded from 1935. Test Act was the name given to various laws in Eng. history meant to exclude Catholics and Nonconformists from office, especially that of 1673, repealed 1828. Test drive (v.) is first recorded 1954.

Test

In technical analysis, it is when a stock price approaches a support or resistance level set by the market. If the stock stays within the support and resistance levels, the test is passed. However, if the stock price reaches new lows and/or new highs, the test has failed.

Investopedia Commentary

To test whether a stock price will break a support or resistance level, technical traders will typically use specific stock-charting programs designed to track price movements to identify when to buy or sell a position.

test

The attempt by a stock price or a stock market average to break through a support level or a resistance level. For example, a stock that has declined to $20 on several occasions without moving lower may be expected to test this support level once again. Failing to fall below $20 one more time would be considered a successful test of the support level and a bullish sign for the stock.

Main Entry: ¹test
Pronunciation: 'test
Function: noun
1 : a critical examination, observation, evaluation, or 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 test of a statisticalhypothesis>
2 : a means of testing: as a (1) : a procedure or reaction used to identify or characterize a substance or constituent test for starchusing iodine> (2) : a reagent used in such a test b : a diagnostic procedure for determining the nature of a condition or disease or for revealing a change in function—see BLOOD TEST, DICK TEST, PATCH TEST, TUBERCULIN TEST, WASSERMANN TEST c : something (as a series of questions or exercises) for measuring the skill, knowledge,intelligence, capacities, or aptitudes of an individual or group —see INTELLIGENCE TEST, PERSONALITYINVENTORY
3 : a result or value determined by testing

Main Entry: ²test
Function: transitive verb
: to subject to a test test intransitive senses
1 : to undergo a test
2 : to apply a test as a means of analysis or diagnosis —used with for <test for the presence of starch>

Main Entry: ³test
Function: adjective
1 : of, relating to, or constituting a test test environment affected the scores>
2 : subjected to, used for, or revealed by testing test animals> <test substances>

test (těst)
n.

A procedure for critical evaluation; a means of determining the presence, quality, or truth of something; an examination, or experiment.
A physical or chemical change by which a substance may be detected or its properties ascertained.
A reagent used to cause or promote such a change.

v. test·ed, test·ing, tests

To subject to a test; try.
To determine the presence or properties of a substance.
To administer a test.
To exhibit a given characteristic when subjected to a test.

test testing
The process of exercising a product to identify differences between expected and actual behaviour. Typically testing is bottom-up: unit testing and integration testing by developers, system testing by testers, and user acceptance testing by users.
Test coverage attempts to assess how complete a test has been.
2. The second stage in a generate and test search algorithm.
[The Jargon File]
(2003-09-24)

test

see acid test; put to the test.

TEST
Telemedicine and Education Support Team

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