Standard Lemma guide

trialist

adj · noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈtɹaɪəlɪst/

1

adj

Meaning 1

Involving three elements; especially, pertaining to a potential state comprising Austria, Hungary, and a Slavic region.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An advocate of trialism, especially with reference to the proposed creation of a state comprising Austria, Hungary, and a Slavic region.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

A person who takes part in a clinical trial, especially as a researcher.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: medicine, sciences

Examples

  • 2001, LeRoy Walters and Tamar Joy Kahn (eds.), Bibliography of Bioethics, Washington, DC: Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Volume 27, p. 48, The balance of expertise and authority between research subjects and triallists is profoundly changed, raising questions about the limits of voluntarism and differing perspectives on risk—benefit analysis.
  • 2002, Mike Clarke, “The importance of The Cochrane Controlled Trials Register to people doing and interpreting randomised trials” in Lelia Duley and Barbara Farrell (eds.), Clinical Trials, London: BMJ Books, p. 30, Having completed their trial, the trialists should ensure that they discuss it in the context of a systematic review of related studies.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A person who tries a product for the first time (as opposed to a regular purchaser); a person who participates in the trial of a new product.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: business

Examples

  • 1995, Louella Miles, Perfect Marketing, London: Arrow Business, Chapter 8, p. 56, 90 per cent of profit is said to come from repeat purchasers and the rest from triallists
  • 2011, Adrian Slywotzky, Demand, New York: Business Plus, p. 223, [The groups] included the core audience—subscribers who attend numerous concerts every year for many years; trialists—first-time concertgoers who attend a single performance; the noncommitted—people who attend a couple of concerts in a given year [...]

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

An athlete who participates in a trial (competition to select players for a team); a person who enters a dog (especially a sheepdog) in a competition.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: UK

Topics: hobbies, lifestyle, sports

Examples

  • 1998, John Gordon, Three Sheep and a Dog, Auckland: Reed, Chapter 8, p. 107, Event I, the long head [...] ends with the hold: sheep at a standstill in a 20-metre ring and held there, with the dog and triallist balanced on either side.
  • 2012, Robert Earnshaw, Earnie: My Life at Cardiff City, Bedlinog: Accent, Chapter 4, p. 22, A [Youth Training Scheme] place would be the first step on the ladder, a contract with the club which would see you move from triallist to employee, someone the club was willing to invest in.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

A person standing trial in a court of law, especially one of a group of defendants in a high-profile case.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: South-Africa

Examples

  • 2006, Christina Scott, Nelson Mandela: A Force for Freedom, New York: Gramercy Books, Chapter 5, p. 71, Mandela’s fellow treason trialist, the feisty Helen Joseph, was the first person to be placed under house arrest.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From trial (“three”) + -ist.

From trial (“test; experiment; court proceedings”) + -ist.