Word.ws English Dictionary

set the bar

set the bar verb: to set specific standards or expectations.

Verb

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

  1. (idiomatic) To set specific standards or expectations.
    • to set the bar high; to set the bar low
    • She set the bar at an hour of exercise a day.
    Synonyms:
    put the bar

Synonyms of set the bar

  • put the bar

Forms of set the bar

third-person singular presentsets the bar
present participlesetting the bar
past participleset the bar
pastset the bar

Questions about set the bar

What does set the bar mean?
Set the bar means to set specific standards or expectations.
What part of speech is set the bar?
Set the bar is a verb.
What is the past tense of set the bar?
The past tense of set the bar is set the bar.

Words near set the bar in the dictionary

  1. set square
  2. set squares
  3. set store by
  4. set straight
  5. set the ball rolling
  6. set the bar
  7. set the cat among the pigeons
  8. set the heather alight
  9. set the heather on fire
  10. set the land
  11. set the pace

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: set the bar (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-set the bar.ogg.

Cite this entry: “set the bar.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/set_the_bar. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.