试(shì) - to try, to test, to attempt in Mandarin

试 (shì) means to try or to test, and it turns up doubled almost as often as it turns up alone: 试试 (shìshi) or 试一试 (shì yī shì), "give it a try", softens the verb the way English tacks "just" onto an instruction. 你试一下这件衣服 (nǐ shì yīxià zhè jiàn yīfu), "try on this piece of clothing", is a shop assistant's stock line.

Attach 着 (zhe) or 了 (le) and 试 (shì) behaves like any other action verb: 试着回答 (shìzhe huídá), "try to answer", describes an attempt in progress, while 试了很多次 (shìle hěnduō cì), "tried many times", reports attempts already made.

试 (shì) is also the root of 考试 (kǎoshì), "exam" - literally an "examine-and-test" - so once you have this character, that common compound stops needing to be learned as a separate blob of sound.