on trial

idiom

: in a situation in which evidence against one is presented in a court to a judge and often a jury to decide if one is guilty of a crime

on trial for murder

She went on trial for possession of drugs.

—sometimes used figuratively to indicate that people will think about something in a critical way

The controversial case has put the entire health care system on trial.

Examples of on trial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Almost two years after 13 people were arrested for allegedly damaging Stanford University’s executive offices during a June 2024 protest urging the school to divest from companies linked to Israel, five defendants are now on trial in Santa Clara County Superior Court. —Ryan MacAsero, Mercury News, 10 Jan. 2026

When a president is on trial, the Supreme Court chief justice presides. —Kinsey Crowley, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026

If the goal is to simply put Maduro on trial, or to try and stop the flow of drugs, that’s not legitimate. —Agustina Vergara Cid, Oc Register, 7 Jan. 2026

Everybody but Lisa has put her on trial, and the season ends on this anticlimactic divide. —Tom Smyth, Vulture, 7 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for on trial

• dial
• rial
• thiol
• vial
• denial
• mistrial
• posttrial
• pretrial
• retrial
• sensorial
• supervisorial