Online Etymology Dictionary

test (n.): late 14c., "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 history meant to exclude Catholics and Nonconformists from office, especially that of 1673, repealed 1828.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.
tester (1): "one who tests," 1661, from test.
examine: c.1300, from O.Fr. examiner "to test, to try," from L. examinare "to test or try," from examen "a means of weighing or testing," probably ult. from exigere "weigh accurately" (see exact). First record of examination in the sense of "test of knowledge" is from 1612; shortened form exam first attested 1848.
Pap test: 1963, short for Papanicolaou (1947) in ref. to George Nicholas Papanicolaou (1883-1962), Gk.-born U.S. anatomist who developed the technique of examining secreted cells to test for cancer.
experiment: 1348, from O.Fr. experiment, from L. experimentum "a trial, test," from experiri "to test, try" (see experience). The verb is 1481, from the noun.
probation: c.1412, "trial, experiment, test," from O.Fr. probacion (14c.), from L. probationem (nom. probatio) "inspection, examination," noun of action from probare "to test" (see prove). Meaning "testing of a person's conduct" is from 1432; theological sense first recorded 1526; criminal justice sense is first recorded in U.S. c.1878.
experience: late 14c., from O.Fr. experience, from L. experientia "knowledge gained by repeated trials," from experientem (nom. experiens), prp. of experiri "to try, test," from ex- "out of" + peritus "experienced, tested." The v. (1530s) first meant "to test, try;" sense of "feel, undergo" first recorded 1580s.
paragon: 1548, from M.Fr. paragon "a model, pattern of excellence" (15c.), from It. paragone, originally "touchstone to test gold" (c.1324), from paragonare "to test on a touchstone, compare," from Gk. parakonan "to sharpen, whet," from para- "on the side" + akone "whetstone," from PIE base *ak- "be pointed."
essay: 1597, "short non-fiction literary composition" (first attested in writings of Francis Bacon, probably in imitation of Montaigne), from M.Fr. essai "trial, attempt, essay," from L.L. exagium "a weighing, weight," from L. exigere "test," from ex- "out" + agere apparently meaning here "to weigh." The suggestion is of unpolished writing. Essayist is from 1609. The more literal verb meaning "to put to proof, test the mettle of" is from 1483; this sense has mostly gone with the divergent spelling assay (q.v.).
basalt: c.1600, from L.L. basaltes, misspelling of L. basanites "very hard stone," from Gk. basanites "a species of slate used to test gold," from basanos "touchstone." Not connected with salt. Said by Pliny ["Historia," 36.58] to be an African word, perhaps Egyptian bauhan "slate." Any hard, very dark rock would do as a touchstone; the assayer compared the streak left by the alleged gold with that of real gold or baser metals. Hence Gk. basanizein "to be put to the test, examined closely, cross-examined, to be put to torture."
proof: early 13c., preove "evidence to establish the fact of (something)," from O.Fr. prueve (early 13c.), from L.L. proba "a proof," a back-formation from L. probare "to prove" (see prove). Meaning "act of testing or making trial of anything" is from late 14c. Sense of "tested power" led to fireproof (early 17c.), waterproof (1736), foolproof (1902), etc. Meaning "standard of strength of distilled liquor" is from 1705. Typographical sense of "trial impression to test type" is from c.1600; proofreader first attested 1832. Numismatic sense of "coin struck to test a die" is from 1762; now mostly in ref. to coins struck from highly polished dies, mainly for collectors.
SAT: 1961, acronym for Scholastic Aptitude Test.
zip (n.): "zero," 1900, student slang for a grade of zero on a test, etc.; of unknown origin; cf. zilch.
panjandrum: mock name for a pompous personage, 1755, invented by Samuel Foote (1720-77) to test the memory of actor old Macklin (who said he could repeat anything after hearing it once) in a long passage full of nonsense.
Ishihara: name for the popular type of colorblindness test, 1924, from Jap. ophthalmologist Shinobu Ishihara, who devised it in 1917.
Wassermann: test for syphillis, 1909, from Ger. bacteriorologist August Paul Wassermann (1866-1925), who devised it in 1906.
crucible: mid-15c., from M.L. crucibulum "melting pot for metals," originally "night lamp." First element might be M.H.G. kruse "earthen pot." Used of any severe test or trial since 1645.
stanine: "nine-point scale for test scores," introduced by the U.S. Air Force in 1942, from sta(ndard) + nine.
expert (adj.): late 14c., from L. expertus, pp. of experiri "to try, test" (see experience). The n. sense of "person wise through experience" existed 15c., reappeared 1825.
Stanford-Binet: intelligence test, first published 1916 as a revision and extension of the Binet-Simon intelligence tests, from Sanford University + Alfred Binet (1857-1911).
tempt: early 13c., from O.Fr. tempter (12c.), from L. temptare "to feel, try out, attempt to influence, test." Tempting in the sense of "inviting" is from 1596; temptress is from 1594.
probate (n.): "official proving of a will," 1463, from L. probatum "a thing proved," neut. of probatus, pp. of probare "to try, test, prove" (see prove). The verb is recorded from 1792.
Rorschach: 1927, in reference to Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach (1885-1922), who developed the personality test using ink blots. The town so named on the Swiss side of Lake Constance is from an early form of Ger. Röhr "reeds" + Schachen "lakeside."
puzzle (v.): 1590s, pusle "bewilder, confound," possibly frequentative of pose (v.) in obsolete sense of "perplex" (cf. nuzzle from nose). The noun meaning "state of being puzzled" is recorded from c.1600, from the verb; meaning "perplexing question" is from 1650s; that of "a toy contrived to test one's ingenuity" is from 1814.
tentacle: 1762, from Mod.L. tentaculum "feeler," from L. tentare "to feel, try" (variant of temptare "to feel, try, test") + -culum, diminutive suffix.
probe (n.): 1580, "instrument for exploring wounds, etc.," from M.L. proba "examination," in L.L. "test, proof," from L. probare (see prove). Meaning "act of probing" is 1890, from the verb; fig. sense of "penetrating investigation" is from 1903. Meaning "small, unmanned exploratory craft" is attested from 1953. The verb is first recorded 1649 (originally figurative; "to search thoroughly, interrogate"), from the noun.
docimacy: "judicial inquiry into the character of aspirants for office or citizenship," especially in ancient Athens, 1801, from Gk. dokimasia "assay, proving, examination," from stem of dokimazein "to test, prove," from dokimos "proven, genuine," lit. "accepted," related to dekhesthai "to take, accept," cognate with L. decere "to be seemly or fitting" (see decent).
tentative: 1588, from M.L. tentativus "trying, testing," from L. tentatus, pp. of tentare "to feel, try," (variant of temptare "to feel, try, test").
sample: c.1300, "something which confirms a proposition or statement," from Anglo-Fr. saumple, aphetic of O.Fr. essample, from L. exemplum "a sample" (see example). Meaning "small quantity (of something) from which the general quality (of the whole) may be inferred" (usually in a commercial sense) is recorded from 1428; sense of "specimen for scientific sampling" is from 1878. The verb meaning "to test by taking a sample" is from 1767.
prelude: 1561, from M.Fr. prélude "notes sung or played to test the voice or instrument" (1532), from M.L. preludium "prelude, preliminary," from L. præludere "to play beforehand for practice, preface," from præ- "before" + ludere "to play" (see ludicrous). Purely musical sense first attested in Eng. 1658.
choice: c.1300, from O.Fr. chois, from v. choisir "to choose," from a Gmc. source (cf. Gothic *kausjan "to taste, test"), from P.Gmc. base *kaus-, *keus-. Replaced O.E. cyre, from the same base, probably because the imported word was closer to choose. Sense of "that which is preferable to be chosen, the flower, the elite" is from 1494, from adj. in this sense (c.1350).
attempt (v.): early 15c., from O.Fr. attempter (14c.), earlier atenter "to try, attempt, test," from L. attemptare "to try" (cf. It. attentare, Port. attentar, Sp. atentar), from ad- "to, upon" + temptare "to try" (see tempt). The noun is first recorded 1530s.
shibboleth: 1382, the Heb. word shibboleth "flood, stream," also "ear of corn," in Judges xii:4-6. It was the password used by the Gileadites to distinguish their own men from fleeing Ephraimites, because Ephraimites could not pronounce the -sh- sound. Figurative sense of "watchword" is first recorded 1638, and it evolved by 1862 to "outmoded slogan still adhered to." A similar test-word was cicera "chick pease," used by the Italians to identify the French (who could not pronounce it correctly) during the massacre called the Sicilian Vespers (1282).
approve: mid-14c., "to attest (something) with authority," from O.Fr. aprover (Fr. approuver), from L. approbare "to assent to as good, regard as good," from ad- "to" + probare "to try, test something (to find if it is good)," from probus "honest, genuine" (see prove). The meaning extended late 14c. to "show (something) to be good," then to "assent to (something) as good" (early 15c.), especially in ref. to authorities, parliaments, etc.
probable: 1387, from O.Fr. probable (14c.), from L. probabilis "provable," from probare "to try, to test" (see prove). Probable cause as a legal term is attested from 1676. Probably is attested from 1535; probability from 1551.
salver: 1661, "tray," formed in Eng. on the model of platter, etc., from Fr. salve "tray used for presenting objects to the king," from Sp. salva "a testing of food or drink" to test for poison (a procedure known as pre-gustation), hence "tray on which food was placed to show it was safe to eat," from salvar "to save, render safe," from L.L. salvare (see save).
try: c.1300, "examine judiciously, sit in judgment of," from Anglo-Fr. trier (late 13c.), from O.Fr. trier "to pick out, cull" (12c.), from Gallo-Romance *triare, of unknown origin. The ground sense is "separate out (the good) by examination." Meaning "to test" is first recorded mid-14c.; that of "attempt to do" is from early 14c. Sense of "to subject to some strain" (of patience, endurance, etc.) is recorded from 1530s. Trying "distressing" is first attested 1718. Try-out "trial of skill or ability" first recorded 1903. To try (something) on for size in the figurative sense is recorded from 1956.
moot: 1154, from O.E. gemot "meeting" (especially of freemen, to discuss community affairs or mete justice), from P.Gmc. *ga-motan (cf. Old Low Frankish muot "encounter," M.Du. moet, M.H.G. muoz), from collective prefix *ga- + *motan (see meet (v.)). The adj. senses of "debatable" and "not worth considering" arose from moot case, earlier simply moot (n.) "discussion of a hypothetical law case" (1531), in law student jargon, in ref. to students gathering to test their skills in mock cases.
prove: c.1175, prouwe, from O.Fr. prover (11c.), from L. probare "to test, prove worthy," from probus "worthy, good, upright, virtuous," from PIE *pro-bhwo- "being in front," from *pro-, extended form of base *per-, + base *bhu- "to be" (cf. L. fui "I have been," futurus "about to be;" O.E. beon "to be;" see be).
gusto: 1620s, from It. gusto "taste," from L. gustus "a tasting," related to gustare "to taste," from PIE base *geus- (cf. Skt. jus- "enjoy, be pleased," Avestan zaosa- "pleasure," O.Pers. dauš- "enjoy"), a root that forms words for "taste" in Gk. and L., but mostly meaning "try" or "choose" in Gmc. and Celt. (cf. O.E. cosan, cesan "to choose," Goth. kausjan "to test, to taste of," O.H.G. koston "try," Ger. kosten "taste of"). The semantic development could have been in either direction.
chicken: O.E. cycen "young fowl," which in M.E. came to mean "young chicken," then any chicken, from W.Gmc. *kiukinam, from base *keuk- (possibly root of cock, of echoic origin) + dim. suffix. Sense of "cowardly" is at least as old as 14c.; the v. meaning "to back down or fail through cowardice" is from 1943, U.S. slang; as a game of danger to test courage, it is first recorded 1953. Chicken hawk "public person who advocates war but who declined significant opportunity to serve in uniform during wartime" is attested from at least 1988, Amer.Eng. Chicken feed "paltry sum of money" is from 1904. Chickweed (c.1440) was in O.E. cicene mete "chicken food."
shift (v.): O.E. sciftan "arrange, divide," related to sceadan "divide, separate" (see shed (v.)), from P.Gmc. *skiftanan (cf. O.N. skipta "to divide, change, separate," O.Fris. skifta "to decide, determine, test," Du. schiften "to divide, turn," Ger. schichten "to classify," Schicht "shift"). Sense of "change" appeared mid-13c.; that of "move, transfer" is late 14c.; that of "manage to get along" is first attested 1510s, in phrase shift for oneself, and yielded shiftless in the modern sense (1580s).
ordeal: O.E. ordel, lit. "judgment, verdict," from P.Gmc. noun *uzdailjam (cf. O.Fris. urdel, Du. oordeel, Ger. urteil "judgment"), lit. "that which is dealt out" (by the gods), from *uzdailijan "share out," related to O.E. adælan "to deal out" (see deal). The notion is of the kind of arduous physical test (such as walking blindfolded and barefoot between red-hot plowshares) that was believed to determine a person's guilt or innocence by immediate judgment of the deity, an ancient Teutonic mode of trial. Eng. retains a more exact sense of the word; its cognates in Ger., etc., have been generalized. Curiously absent in M.E., and perhaps reborrowed 16c. from M.L. or M.Fr., which got it from Gmc. Metaphoric extension to "anything which tests character or endurance" is attested from 1658. The prefix or- survives in Eng. only in this word, but was common in O.E. and other Gmc. languages (Goth. ur-, O.N. or-, etc.) and was originally an adv. and prep. meaning "out."
litmus: early 14c., from M.Du. lijkmoes (Du. lakmoes), from lac (see lac) + moes "pulp." The other theory is that it represents O.N. litmose, lit. "lichen for dying," from O.N. lita "to dye, to stain," from litr "color, dye," from P.Gmc. *wlitiz (cf. O.E. wlite "brightness, beauty," O.Fris. wlite "exterior, form," Goth. *wlits "face, form") + mos "moss." Yet another idea connects the first element to M.Du. leken "to drip, leak." Whichever was the original word, it probably was influenced by the others. The dye is obtained from certain lichens. It is naturally blue but turns red in acid and is restored to blue by alkalis. Figurative use of litmus test is first attested 1957, from scientific use of litmus-treated paper as a chemical indicator. Litmus paper with this meaning is from 1803.
bikini: 1948, from Fr. coinage, 1947, named for U.S. A-bomb test of June 1946 on Bikini, Marshall Islands atoll, locally Pikinni and said to derive from pik "surface" and ni "coconut," but this is uncertain. Various explanations for the swimsuit name have been suggested, none convincingly, the best being an analogy of the explosive force of the bomb and the impact of the bathing suit style on men's libidos (cf. c.1900 British slang assassin "an ornamental bow worn on the female breast," so called because it was very "killing").
"Bikini, ce mot cinglant comme l'explosion même ... correspondant au niveau du vêtement de plage à on antéantissement de la surface vêtue; à une minimisation extrême de la pudeur." [Le Monde, 1947]
Variant style trikini (1967), with separate bra cups held on by Velcro, falsely presumes a compound in bi-.
road: O.E. rad "riding, hostile incursion," from P.Gmc. *ridanan, source of O.E. ridan (see ride). Also related to raid. In M.E., "a riding, a journey," sense of "open way for traveling between two places" is first recorded 1596. Modern spelling only established 18c. Roadblock is attested from 1940. Roadster "open two-seat automobile" is from 1908, earlier of light carriages (1892), originally "a ship lying near the shore" (1744), which is from the nautical sense of "narrow stretch of sheltered water" (c.1320, cf. Hampton Roads in Virginia). Road test is from 1906. Road hog is attested from 1891; road rage is from 1988; roadie "laborer employed by pop groups while on tour" first recorded 1969; road kill (n.) in the figurative sense is from 1992.
screen (n.): 1393, probably from an aphetic (Anglo-Fr.?) variant of O.N.Fr. escren, O.Fr. escran "a screen against heat" (1318), perhaps from M.Du. scherm "screen, cover," or Frank. *skrank "barrier," from a Gmc. root related to O.H.G. skirm, skerm "protection" (cf. skirmish). Meaning "net-wire frame used in windows and doors" is recorded from 1895. Meaning "flat horizontal surface for reception of projected images" is from 1810, originally in ref. to magic lantern shows; later of movies. Transf. sense of "cinema world collectively" is attested from 1914; hence screenplay (1938), screen test (1922), screenwriter (1921). Verbal meaning "to shield from punishment, to conceal" is recorded from 1485; meaning "examine systematically for suitability" is from 1943; sense of "to release a movie" is from 1915. Screen saver first attested 1990.
snake (n.): O.E. snaca, from P.Gmc. *snakon (cf. O.N. snakr "snake," Swed. snok, Ger. Schnake "ring snake"), from PIE base *snag-, *sneg- "to crawl, creeping thing" (cf. O.Ir. snaighim "to creep," Lith. snake "snail," O.H.G. snahhan "to creep"). In Mod.Eng., gradually replacing serpent in popular use. Meaning "treacherous person" first recorded 1590 (cf. O.C.S. gadu "reptile," gadinu "foul, hateful"). Snake eyes in crap-shooting sense is from 1929. Snake oil is from 1927. Snake-bitten "unlucky" is sports slang from 1957. The game of Snakes and Ladders is attested from 1907. Snake pit is from 1883, as a supposed primitive test of truth or courage; fig. sense is from 1941. Phrase snake in the grass is from Virgil's Latet anguis in herba [Ecl. III.93] Another O.E. word for "snake" was næddre (see adder).
true: O.E. triewe (W.Saxon), treowe (Mercian) "faithful, trustworthy," from P.Gmc. *trewwjaz "having or characterized by good faith" (cf. O.Fris. triuwi, Du. getrouw, O.H.G. gatriuwu, Ger. treu, O.N. tryggr, Goth. triggws "faithful, trusty"), perhaps ultimately from PIE *dru- "tree," on the notion of "steadfast as an oak." Cf., from same root, Lith. drutas "firm," Welsh drud, O.Ir. dron "strong," Welsh derw "true," O.Ir. derb "sure." Sense of "consistent with fact" first recorded c.1200; that of "real, genuine, not counterfeit" is from late 14c.; that of "agreeing with a certain standard" (as true north) is from c.1550. Of artifacts, "accurately fitted or shaped" it is recorded from late 15c.; the verb in this sense is from 1841. Truism "self-evident truth" is from 1708, first attested in writings of Swift. True-love (adj.) is recorded from late 15c.; true-born first attested 1590s. True-false as a type of test question is recorded from 1923.
acid: 1620s, from Fr. acide, from L. acidus "sour," adj. of state from acere "to be sour," from PIE base *ak- "sharp, pointed" (see acrid). Applied to intense colors from 1916. Slang meaning "LSD-25" first recorded 1966 (see LSD); acid rock (type played by or listen to by people using LSD) is also from 1966; acid house dance music style is 1988, probably from acid in the hallucinogenic sense + house "dance club DJ music style." Acid test is Amer.Eng., 1892, from the frontier days, when gold was distinguished from similar metals by application of nitric acid. Acid rain is first recorded 1859 in ref. to England. Adj. acidic is attested from 1877, originally in geology.
“When I was on acid I would see things that looked like beams of light, and I would hear things that sounded an awful lot like car horns.” [Mitch Hedberg, 1968-2005, U.S. stand-up comic]