set

Verb (1)

set (third-person singular simple present sets, present participle setting, simple past set, past participle set or (dialectal) setten)

1. (transitive) To put (something) down, to rest.
   • Set the tray there.

   Synonyms:

   put, lay, set down

   Antonyms:

   pick up

2. (transitive) To attach or affix (something) to something else, or in or upon a certain place.
   • I have set my heart on running the marathon.
   • The Lord set a mark upon Cain.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 4:15
3. (transitive) To put in a specified condition or state; to cause to be.
   • The Lord thy God will set thee on high.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Deuteronomy 28:1
   • I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Matthew 10:35
4. (transitive) To start (a fire).

   Synonyms:

   light

   Antonyms:

   extinguish, put out, quench

5. (dated, transitive) To cause to stop or stick; to obstruct; to fasten to a spot.
   • to set a coach in the mud
6. (transitive) To determine or settle.
   • to set the rent
7. (transitive) To adjust.
   • I set the alarm at 6 a.m.
   • I set the alarm for 6 a.m.
8. (transitive) To punch (a nail) into wood so that its head is below the surface.
9. (transitive) To arrange with dishes and cutlery, to set the table.
   • Please set the table for our guests.
10. (transitive) To introduce or describe.
    • I’ll tell you what happened, but first let me set the scene.
    • An incident which happened about this time will set the characters of these two lads more fairly before the discerning reader than is in the power of the longest dissertation.1749, Henry Fielding, chapter II, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC
11. (transitive) To locate (a play, etc.); to assign a backdrop to, geographically or temporally.
    • He says he will set his next film in France.
    • Her debut novel is set during the U.S. Civil War.
12. (transitive) To compile, to make (a puzzle or challenge).
    • This crossword was set by Araucaria.

Noun (1)

set (plural sets)

1. A punch for setting nails in wood.
   • nail set
2. A device for receiving broadcast radio waves (or, more recently, broadcast data); a radio or television.
   • television set
   • Say, you can watch 60 Minutes / Even Captain Kangaroo / But there's only one set, so whatever you watch / Well, you know I gotta watch it too1984, "Weird Al" Yankovic, “The Brady Bunch”, in "Weird Al" Yankovic in 3-D
3. A small tuber or bulb used instead of seed, particularly onion sets and potato sets.
4. The amount by which the teeth of a saw protrude to the side in order to create the kerf.
5. A permanent change of shape caused by excessive strain, as from compression, tension, bending, twisting, etc.
   • the set of a spring
   • The wings were bent or set permanently 2 to 3 inches upward at the wingtips; however, the set was within the manufacturer's allowable tolerances.1986 March 29, National Transportation Safety Board, “1.12 Wreckage and Impact Information”, in Aircraft Accident Report: China Airlines Boeing 747-SP, N4522V, 300 Nautical Miles Northwest of San...
6. A bias of mind; an attitude or pattern of behaviour.
7. A piece placed temporarily upon the head of a pile when the latter cannot otherwise be reached by the weight, or hammer.
8. (dated) The width of the body of a type.
9. A young oyster when first attached.
10. Collectively, the crop of young oysters in any locality.
11. A series or group of something. (Note the similar meaning in Etymology 4, Noun)
12. (colloquial) The manner, state, or quality of setting or fitting; fit.
    • the set of a coat
    • Mr. Joolby lay on the floor beside his special chair, his face doubly terrible in its rigid set, his body writhing this way and that with spasmodic jerks and contortions.1934, Ernest Bramah, The Bravo of London

Adjective

set (comparative more set, superlative most set)

1. Fixed in position.
   • Irregular bedtimes may disrupt healthy brain development in young children, according to a study of intelligence and sleeping habits. ¶ Going to bed at a different time each night affected girls more than boys, but both fared worse on mental tasks than children who had a set bedtime, researchers...2013 July 19, Ian Sample, “Irregular bedtimes may affect children's brains”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 34
2. Rigid, solidified.
3. Ready, prepared.
   • on your marks, get set, go!; on your marks, set, go!
4. Intent, determined (to do something).
   • set on getting to his destination
   • And she likes you so much, and thinks you so accomplished and distingué-looking, and was just as set as I was to have you for best man.1892, Robert Louis Stevenson, Lloyd Osbourne, “In which Jim and I Take Different Ways”, in The Wrecker, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, […], →OCLC, page 179

   Synonyms:

   determined, intent

5. Prearranged.
   • a set menu
   • a set book

   Synonyms:

   dictated, prearranged, predetermined, prescribed, specified

6. Fixed in one’s opinion.
   • I’m set against the idea of smacking children to punish them.

   Synonyms:

   fixed, rigid

7. Fixed in a certain style.

Noun (2)

set (plural sets)

1. A young plant fit for setting out; a slip; shoot.
2. A rudimentary fruit.
3. The setting of the sun or other luminary; (by extension) the close of the day.
   • The weary sun hath made a golden set.c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
   • And a rose-bush leans upon, / Thou that faintly smilest still, / As a Naiad in a well, / Looking at the set of day, […]1842, Alfred Tennyson, “Adeline”, in Poems. […], volume I, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 41

   Synonyms:

   dusk, eve, evening, sundown, sunset

4. (figuratively, literally) General movement; direction; drift; tendency.
   • Here and there, amongst individuals alive to the particular evils of the age, and watching the very set of the current, there may have been even a more systematic counteraction applied to the mischief.1840, Thomas De Quincey, Style
   • He put his eye to the alidade. “I thought so! Zero five four and that's allowing nothing for set and drift along the line of bearing. We're inside the departure point now[…]”1951, Herman Wouk, The Caine Mutiny, page 238

   Synonyms:

   direction, drift, heading, motion, movement, path, tendency, trend

5. A matching collection of similar things. (Note the similar meaning in Etymology 2, Noun.)
   • a set of tables

   Synonyms:

   suite, block

6. A collection of various objects for a particular purpose.
   • a set of tools
7. An object made up of several parts.
   • a set of steps
8. A collection of zero or more objects, possibly infinite in size, and disregarding any order or repetition of the objects which may be contained within it.
9. (informal, plural, “sets”) Set theory.
10. A group of people, usually meeting socially or connected through some shared interest, activity, attribute, etc.
    • the country set
    • That he took perfumed baths is a truth; and he used to say that he took them after meeting certain men of a very low set in hall.1848 November – 1850 December, William Makepeace Thackeray, chapter XIX, in The History of Pendennis. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published...

    Synonyms:

    club, coterie

11. The scenery for a film or play.

    Synonyms:

    scenery

12. The general locations and area where a movie’s, a film’s, or a video’s scenery is arranged to be filmed also including places for actors, assorted crew, director, producers which are typically not filmed.

Verb (2)

set (third-person singular simple present sets, present participle setting, simple past and past participle setted)

1. (UK) To divide a class group in a subject according to ability
   • In setted classes, students are brought together because they are believed to be of similar 'ability'. Yet, setted lessons are often conducted as though students are not only similar, but identical—in terms of ability, preferred learning style and pace of working.2008, Patricia Murphy, Robert McCormick, Knowledge and Practice: Representations and Identities
   • At Amber Hill, setting was a high-profile concept, and the students were frequently reminded of the set to which they belonged.2002, Jo Boaler, Experiencing School Mathematics: Traditional and Reform Approaches and Their Impact on Student Learning

Noun (3) capitalized: SET

SET (uncountable)

1. Gene for a human protein involved in apoptosis, transcription and nucleosome assembly.
2. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Simulated Emergency Test, an amateur radio training exercise.

Proper noun (1) capitalized: SET

SET

1. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Strategic Energy Technologies Plan of the European Union.
2. (abbreviation, initialism) Initialism of Stock Exchange of Thailand, the national stock exchange of Thailand.

Proper noun (2) capitalized: Set

IPA/ˈsɛt/

Set

1. (Egyptian) An ancient Egyptian god, variously described as the god of chaos, the god of thunder and storms, or the god of destruction.

   Synonyms:

   Bab, Baba