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Showing results for probationary. Search instead for prohibitionary.
Synonyms

probationary

American  
[proh-bey-shuh-ner-ee] / proʊˈbeɪ ʃəˌnɛr i /
Rarely probational

adjective

  1. being or relating to an act, process, or period of testing, as of a person’s character, performance, qualifications, etc..

    All our new hires have probationary status until their three-month review.

  2. Law.

    1. relating to probation, a method of dealing with offenders, especially youth guilty of minor crimes or first offenses, by allowing them to go at large under the supervision of a probation officer.

      The judge’s options include sending the minor to a probationary camp for juvenile offenders.

    2. relating to conditional release.

      Clients who have completed the probationary period are discharged from the program and released from their prison sentence.

  3. Education. being or relating to a trial period or condition of students who are being permitted to redeem academic failures, misconduct, etc..

    Remediation plans for each probationary student must be submitted to the department Chair by midterm.

Other Word Forms

  • unprobational adjective
  • unprobationary adjective

Etymology

Origin of probationary

probation ( def. ) + -ary ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Joslin had about four weeks left in a two-year probationary period.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

According to the document, the union’s latest proposal seeks to eliminate the probationary period entirely.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 10, 2025

Though he had been in the civil service for more than two years, a recent promotion designated him as a probationary worker—a category of staff among the first targeted for layoffs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 4, 2025

People can apply to an immigration judgeship and after a probationary period, the attorney general goes on to appoint them—but it’s not a lifetime appointment.

From Slate • Jul. 23, 2025

He hadn’t lived there long, but was already on probationary status for being loud and aggressive with the other residents.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.