examination

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ɪɡˌzæm.ɪˈneɪ.ʃən/, /ɛɡ-/ (UK); /ɪɡˌzæm.əˈneɪ.ʃən/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English examinacioun, borrowed from Old French examinacion,^[2][3] from Latin exāminātio, a noun of action from exāmināre (“to weigh, test, consider”) (see examine),^[2][4] from exāmen (“the tongue of a balance”).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The action of testing or judging by a standard, and judicial inquiry: about 1386 and 1387 in the OED, the late 14th century in Etymonline.^[6][2] NODE adds the testing of one's conscience.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Searching or inquiring into facts is from 1538,^[6] and investigating the nature or condition of an object, as in a medical examination, from 1630.^[6] The testing of a person's knowledge by questions, a test, is from 1612, the 1610s in Etymonline.^[6][2] The formal questioning of a witness in court is also an examination.^[7][8]

Timeline

• c. 1386 – testing by a standard.^[6]
• 1387 – a judicial inquiry.^[6]
• 1538 – inquiry into facts.^[6]
• 1612 – a test of knowledge.^[6][2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A detailed inspection or investigation.
2. A formal test of knowledge or skill, by written or spoken questions or practical tasks.
3. A medical inspection of the body.
4. (law) The formal questioning of a witness or accused person.

Word family

• examinational
• cross-examination
• exam
• preexamination
• self-examination
• bar examination
• direct examination
• physical examination

Related words

• examine
• examiner
• exact

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins