Probation

·noun The act of proving; also, that which proves anything; proof.

II. Probation ·noun The trial of a ministerial candidate's qualifications prior to his ordination, or to his settlement as a pastor.

III. Probation ·noun The novitiate which a person must pass in a convent, to probe his or her virtue and ability to bear the severities of the rule.

IV. Probation ·noun Any proceeding designed to ascertain truth, to determine character, qualification, ·etc.; examination; trial; as, to engage a person on probation.

V. Probation ·noun Moral trial; the state of man in the present life, in which he has the opportunity of proving his character, and becoming qualified for a happier state.