Probations

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A period of testing experience in various contexts
2. a stage during which someone is under observation for suitability or behavior
3. a form of supervised release after a conviction or disciplinary action

Etymology: "Probations" is simply the plural of "probation", so its history is that of the singular noun. The root is the Latin verb "probare", meaning to test or examine, the same source that gave English "prove", "probe" and "probate". Latin "probatio" meant a trying, inspection or examination, and the word passed through Old French "probacion" and Middle French "probation" before reaching Middle English as "probacioun". The sense of a testing period has been present since the start: a probation was a trial meant to show whether someone was fit for a role or status. The idea of a period under observation for behavior grew naturally out of that meaning of examination, so the modern sense is a direct continuation of the Latin one rather than a later shift.

Synonyms: tests, trials