on probation
idiom
1
: being tested and watched at a new job to see if one is able to do the job properly
As a new employee, I will be on probation for three months.
2
: being allowed to stay out of prison after committing a crime if one behaves well, does not commit another crime, etc.
She was arrested while on probation.
3
: being watched for a period of time during which one must behave well in order not to be seriously punished after having made a serious mistake or done something bad
He was on probation for cheating.
The student was put/placed on probation for copying test answers.
Examples of on probation in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At the time of his arrest in February 2024, Greene was already on probation for previous drug convictions, per WIS News 10.
—
Samantha Stutsman, PEOPLE, 26 Nov. 2025
Anne Hassel spent a month in jail and a year on probation for growing cannabis in the 1980s.
—Leah Willingham, Fortune, 25 Nov. 2025
Bradley Gene Funk, 59, who was on probation for a 2021 DUI conviction, allegedly struck a curb early Tuesday in Dana Point and plowed into Luis Adrian Morales-Pacheco as the boy headed to Niguel Hills Middle School with his older brother, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
—Joshua Rhett Miller, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025
Funk has two prior arrests for DUI and was on probation at the time of the crash for a DUI, the sheriff's department said.
—Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for on probation
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Samantha Stutsman, PEOPLE, 26 Nov. 2025
Anne Hassel spent a month in jail and a year on probation for growing cannabis in the 1980s.
—Leah Willingham, Fortune, 25 Nov. 2025
Bradley Gene Funk, 59, who was on probation for a 2021 DUI conviction, allegedly struck a curb early Tuesday in Dana Point and plowed into Luis Adrian Morales-Pacheco as the boy headed to Niguel Hills Middle School with his older brother, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
—Joshua Rhett Miller, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025
Funk has two prior arrests for DUI and was on probation at the time of the crash for a DUI, the sheriff's department said.
—Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for on probation
Cite this Entry
“On probation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on%20probation. Accessed 29 Nov. 2025.
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