Dictionary

probie en · NOUN

Pronunciation

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Etymology

Etymology tree English probation Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusder. Middle English -arie English -ary English probationary English -ie English probie From probationary + -ie.

Meanings

1. (slang) Someone holding a position on a probationary basis, subject to performance or examination.
   • He's no closer to carrying out the suggestion of the 3rd Step than the day the Probie drove him over to his halfway house from Peabody Holding. 1996, David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest […], Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Little, Brown and Company, →ISBN, page 444:
2. (slang) A neophyte firefighter.
   • A probie never complains. A probie keeps his mouth shut, his eyes open. A probie is never idle. A probie is always learning or drilling or cleaning. That's why you're still called a probie: for one year after you leave training school. 1997. Steve Delson. "The Fire Inside: Firefighters Talk About Their Lives", Page 41

Forms