electrical 101

I'm by far no electrical genius.That being said,would someone take the time to tell me how to test relays?Thanks

The more common automotive relays will have 4 or 5 contacts.

The terminals should be numbered 85, 86, 30, 87, and 87a.
85,86 - coil
30 - common
87 - normally open
87a - normally closed


Applying 12V to terminals 85 and 86 should cause a connection between 30 and 87, otherwise they should be 'open'.

If the relay has the 87a terminal, then there should be a connection between 30 and 87a when no power is applied to the coil. When power is applied to the coil, the conection between 30 and 87a will be broken.