sanity checking
Quick reasonableness review
Sanity checking is the process of verifying that something makes basic sense before proceeding further.
In software development, a sanity check confirms that code or data meets fundamental expectations without exhaustive testing—catching obvious errors early.
The term extends beyond technical contexts to any quick verification: Before submitting the report, I did a sanity check on the numbers.
Unlike thorough review, sanity checking asks only whether results are plausible, not whether they're perfect.
- verificationProving something accurate
- reliabilityConsistent, predictable performance
- plausibilitySeeming likely true
- logicScience of valid reasoning
- validationConfirming truth or accuracy
reasonableness · common sense · back of envelope · quality control · debugging · troubleshooting · accuracy · confirmation · smell test · deductive reasoning · sniff test · critical thinking · second opinion · logical inference · calibration · authentication · red flag · diagnostic testing
sanity checkingblind trust
Complete unquestioning confidence
taking at face value · rubber stamping · willful ignorance · looking the other way
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