A Test Was a Pot for Assaying Metal
A test is a trial or examination. The word named the vessel used to assay gold.
A test is a procedure to establish quality, ability or truth. Latin *testum* was an earthenware pot, specifically the shallow vessel in which metal was assayed: precious metal was heated in it until impurities were absorbed into the pot's material, leaving the pure metal behind. Testing something meant finding out what it really was by burning off everything else. That gives *put to the test* and *acid test*, and the same word gives *testudo*, a tortoise, for its shell-like pot shape.
- An examination. *A written test.*
- A trial. *A test of strength.*
- An assaying pot. *A test.*
- To try. *Testing the theory.*
- Latin — *testum*, a pot. *The root.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | test | A test. |
| Verb | test | Testing. |
| Adjective | testable | Testable. |
| Related | attest | To attest. |
| Latin | testum | A pot. |
- She passed the test.Exam.
- An acid test of loyalty.Idiom.
- Testum was an assaying pot.Etymology.
Assaying words in English
- Test — the pot used for assaying
- Acid test — nitric acid distinguishes gold from base metal
- Touchstone — a dark stone showing the streak of a metal
- Assay — from Old French, a trial or attempt
- Carat — from the carob seed used as a weight
Old French *test*, an earthen vessel, from Latin *testum*, a pot used in assaying.
What was the original test?
A shallow earthenware pot used to assay metal by burning off impurities, leaving the pure metal behind.
Where does acid test come from?
From using nitric acid to distinguish gold from base metals, since gold resists it.