I remember reading a blog post several years ago (link long since forgotten) which introduced me to the distinction between the concepts of “tests” and “checks.” The summary of this distinction can be found in posts like this one:

Testing is the process of evaluating a product by learning about it through experiencing, exploring, and experimenting, which includes to some degree: questioning, study, modeling, observation, inference, etc.

Checking is the process of making evaluations by applying algorithmic decision rules to specific observations of a product.

These are clearly two different types of activities. They deserve a distinction. Although I’m not a fan of these terms (more on that another day), you should be aware of the distinction, and the different connotations these terms can carry with certain people, especially if you hang out in QA or Tester circles,