QA glossary: software testing terms
Fifteen short definitions of software testing terms, each taken from an official source (ISTQB glossary, W3C, DINUM, tool documentation). Updated on 3 November 2026.
Software quality assurance (QA)
Activities focused on providing confidence that the quality requirements of software will be fulfilled (ISTQB definition). QA covers processes, reviews and testing, from scoping to release, and is not limited to finding bugs once the code is written.
Learn more: the ADC QA automation course · Source: ISTQB Glossary
Software testing
The process within the software development lifecycle that evaluates the quality of a component or system and related work products (ISTQB definition). It includes static activities, such as reviewing requirements, and dynamic ones, such as running test cases against the software.
Learn more: the ADC QA automation course · Source: ISTQB Glossary
ISTQB
International Software Testing Qualifications Board: an international non-profit organisation that designs and maintains a vendor-independent scheme of software testing certifications. Its syllabi and glossary give testers in many countries a shared vocabulary.
Learn more: the ISTQB CTFL preparation · Source: istqb.org
ISTQB CTFL v4.0 certification
Certified Tester Foundation Level: the first level of ISTQB certifications, covering the fundamental concepts and practices of testing. The exam has 40 questions in 60 minutes, and the pass mark is 26 out of 40 (65%). Candidates taking it in a language that is not their native language get 75 minutes.
Learn more: the free CTFL mock exam · Source: istqb.org, CTFL v4.0
Playwright
An open-source browser automation tool developed by Microsoft. Its Playwright Test runner is used to write end-to-end tests for web applications and works with the Chromium, Firefox and WebKit engines, so the same user journey can be checked across several browsers.
Learn more: our Playwright page · Source: playwright.dev
Test automation
The use of software to perform or support test activities (ISTQB definition). In practice, scripts run the test cases, compare actual results with expected results and produce a report, so the same checks can be rerun on every new release.
Learn more: our test automation best practices · Source: ISTQB Glossary
Regression testing
A type of change-related testing to detect whether defects have been introduced or uncovered in unchanged areas of the software (ISTQB definition). Because it is rerun on every release, it is one of the first candidates for automation.
Learn more: our test automation best practices · Source: ISTQB Glossary
API testing
Testing performed by submitting requests to the test object through its application programming interface (API), without going through the user interface (ISTQB definition). It checks responses, status codes, data formats and error handling.
Learn more: our API testing guide · Source: ISTQB Glossary
Performance testing
A type of testing to determine the performance efficiency of a component or system (ISTQB definition): response time, throughput and resource usage, for example under a simulated user load.
Learn more: the performance testing course · Source: ISTQB Glossary
Accessibility testing
Checking that a website, application or digital document can be used by people with disabilities, against a standard such as WCAG or RGAA. It combines automated tools with manual checks, for example with the keyboard or a screen reader.
Learn more: the accessibility testing course · Source: DINUM, conformity assessment (French)
WCAG 2.2
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, version 2.2: a W3C Recommendation that defines success criteria, graded at levels A, AA and AAA, to make web content accessible to people with disabilities. It is the most recent version of the international web accessibility guidelines.
Learn more: the accessibility testing course · Source: W3C, WCAG 2.2
RGAA
Référentiel général d'amélioration de l'accessibilité, the French accessibility standard published by DINUM. Version 4.1 sets out a verification method of 106 criteria in 13 themes, based on the level A and AA success criteria of WCAG 2.1. It is used in France to measure the conformity of digital services.
Learn more: the accessibility testing course · Source: DINUM, RGAA criteria and tests (French)
Acceptance test plan (cahier de recette)
A document that gathers the plan and scenarios of the acceptance tests and guides testers through the checks to run on what has been delivered. For each scenario it records the steps, the expected result and the actual result, which forms the basis for accepting the delivery or not.
Learn more: our acceptance test workbook · Source: French Ministry of Culture, GRC guide (p. 38)
CI/CD
Continuous integration and continuous delivery: practices that integrate code changes frequently, with an automated build and tests on every change, then automate the preparation and deployment of releases. With continuous deployment, every validated change goes to production without a manual step.
Learn more: the DevOps QA course · Source: Microsoft Learn
Shift-left
An approach that performs testing and quality assurance activities as early as possible in the development lifecycle (ISTQB definition), for example by reviewing requirements or testing each component as soon as it is written, so defects are fixed when they cost least.
Learn more: the ADC QA automation course · Source: ISTQB Glossary