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settle - 12 dictionary results

set⋅tle

1  [set-l] verb, -tled, -tling.
Use settle in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to appoint, fix, or resolve definitely and conclusively; agree upon (as time, price, or conditions).
2. to place in a desired state or in order: to settle one's affairs.
3. to pay, as a bill.
4. to close (an account) by payment.
5. to migrate to and organize (an area, territory, etc.); colonize: The pilgrims settled Plymouth.
6. to cause to take up residence: They settled immigrants in urban areas.
7. to furnish (a place) with inhabitants or settlers: The French settled this colony with army veterans.
8. to quiet, calm, or bring to rest (the nerves, stomach, etc.).
9. to stop from annoying or opposing: A sharp word will settle that youngster.
10. to conclude or resolve: to settle a dispute.
11. to make stable; place in a permanent position or on a permanent basis.
12. to cause (a liquid) to become clear by depositing dregs.
13. to cause (dregs, sediment, etc.) to sink or be deposited.
14. to cause to sink down gradually; make firm or compact.
15. to dispose of finally; close up: to settle an estate.
16. Law.
a. to secure (property, title, etc.) on or to a person by formal or legal process.
b. to terminate (legal proceedings) by mutual consent of the parties.
–verb (used without object)
17. to decide, arrange, or agree (often fol. by on or upon): to settle on a plan of action.
18. to arrange matters in dispute; come to an agreement: to settle with a person.
19. to pay a bill; make a financial arrangement (often fol. by up).
20. to take up residence in a new country or place: Many Frenchmen settled along the Mississippi River following La Salle's explorations.
21. to come to rest, as from flight: A bird settled on a bough.
22. to gather, collect, or become fixed in a particular place, direction, etc.: A cold settled in my head.
23. to become calm or composed (often fol. by down): I'll wait until the class settles before starting the lesson.
24. to come to rest (often fol. by down): We settled down for the night at an old country inn.
25. to sink down gradually; subside.
26. to become clear by the sinking of suspended particles, as a liquid.
27. to sink to the bottom, as sediment.
28. to become firm or compact, as the ground.
29. (of a female animal) to become pregnant; conceive.
—Verb phrases
30. settle down,
a. to become established in some routine, esp. upon marrying, after a period of independence or indecision.
b. to become calm or quiet.
c. to apply oneself to serious work: There were so many distractions that we weren't able to settle down to studying.
31. settle for, to be satisfied with: to settle for less.
32. settle into, to become established in: to settle into a new routine.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME set(t)len, OE setlan (attested once) to place, deriv. of setl settle 2 ; cf. D zetelen

Related forms:
set⋅tle⋅a⋅ble, adjective
set⋅tle⋅a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun
set⋅tled⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. set, establish. 4. liquidate. 6. relocate. 7. people, colonize. 9. tranquilize, compose, still, pacify. 11. stabilize, establish, confirm. 20. locate, relocate. 25. decline, fall, abate.

set⋅tle

2  [set-l]
–noun
a long seat or bench, usually wooden, with arms and a high back.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME: seat, sitting place, OE setl; c. G Sessel armchair, Goth sitls seat, L sella saddle; akin to sit 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To settle
set·tle   (sět'l)   
v.   set·tled, set·tling, set·tles

v.   tr.
  1. To put into order; arrange or fix definitely as desired.
  2. To put firmly into a desired position or place; establish.
    1. To establish as a resident or residents: settled her family in Ohio.
    2. To establish residence in; colonize: Pioneers settled the West.
    3. To establish in a residence, business, or profession.
    4. To cause to sink, become compact, or come to rest.
    5. To cause (a liquid) to become clear by forming a sediment.
    6. To make compensation for (a claim).
    7. To pay (a debt).
  4. To restore calmness or comfort to.
    1. To cause to sink, become compact, or come to rest.
    2. To cause (a liquid) to become clear by forming a sediment.
    3. To make compensation for (a claim).
    4. To pay (a debt).
  6. To subdue or make orderly.
  7. To establish on a permanent basis; stabilize.
    1. To make compensation for (a claim).
    2. To pay (a debt).
  9. To conclude (a dispute, for example) by a final decision.
  10. To decide (a lawsuit) by mutual agreement of the involved parties without court action.
  11. Law To secure or assign (property or title) by legal action.
v.   intr.
  1. To discontinue moving and come to rest in one place.
  2. To move downward; sink or descend, especially gradually: Darkness settled over the fields. Dust settled in the road.
    1. To become clear by the sinking of suspended particles. Used of liquids.
    2. To be separated from a solution or mixture as a sediment.
    3. To become compact by sinking, as sediment when stirred up.
    4. To establish one's residence: settled in Canada.
    5. To become established or localized: The cold settled in my chest.
    6. To provide compensation for a claim.
    7. To pay a debt.
    1. To establish one's residence: settled in Canada.
    2. To become established or localized: The cold settled in my chest.
    3. To provide compensation for a claim.
    4. To pay a debt.
  5. To reach a decision; determine: We finally settled on a solution to the problem. See Synonyms at decide.
  6. To come to an agreement, especially to resolve a lawsuit out of court.
    1. To provide compensation for a claim.
    2. To pay a debt.
n.  
A long wooden bench with a high back, often including storage space beneath the seat.
Phrasal Verbs:
settle down
  1. To begin living a stable and orderly life: He settled down as a farmer with a family.
  2. To become calm or composed.
Phrasal Verb(s):
settle down
  1. To begin living a stable and orderly life: He settled down as a farmer with a family.
  2. To become calm or composed.
settle forTo accept in spite of incomplete satisfaction: had to settle for a lower wage than the one requested.

Idiom(s):
settle (one's) stomachTo relieve one's indigestion or nausea.

[Middle English setlen, to seat, from Old English setlan, from setl, seat; see sed- in Indo-European roots.]
set'tle·a·ble adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Settle

Set"tle\, n. [OE. setel, setil, a seat, AS. setl: akin to OHG. sezzal, G. sessel, Goth. sitls, and E. sit. [root]154. See Sit.]

1. A seat of any kind. [Obs.] "Upon the settle of his majesty" --Hampole.

2. A bench; especially, a bench with a high back.

3. A place made lower than the rest; a wide step or platform lower than some other part.

And from the bottom upon the ground, even to the lower settle, shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit. --Ezek. xliii. 14.

Settle bed, a bed convertible into a seat. [Eng.]

Settle

Set"tle\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Settled; p. pr. & vb. n. Settling.] [OE. setlen, AS. setlan. [root]154. See Settle, n. In senses 7, 8, and 9 perhaps confused with OE. sahtlen to reconcile, AS. sahtlian, fr. saht reconciliation, sacon to contend, dispute. Cf. Sake.]

1. To place in a fixed or permanent condition; to make firm, steady, or stable; to establish; to fix; esp., to establish in life; to fix in business, in a home, or the like.

And he settled his countenance steadfastly upon him, until he was ashamed. --2 Kings viii. 11. (Rev. Ver.)

The father thought the time drew on Of setting in the world his only son. --Dryden.

2. To establish in the pastoral office; to ordain or install as pastor or rector of a church, society, or parish; as, to settle a minister. [U. S.]

3. To cause to be no longer in a disturbed condition; to render quiet; to still; to calm; to compose.

God settled then the huge whale-bearing lake. --Chapman.

Hoping that sleep might settle his brains. --Bunyan.

4. To clear of dregs and impurities by causing them to sink; to render pure or clear; -- said of a liquid; as, to settle coffee, or the grounds of coffee.

5. To restore or bring to a smooth, dry, or passable condition; -- said of the ground, of roads, and the like; as, clear weather settles the roads.

6. To cause to sink; to lower; to depress; hence, also, to render close or compact; as, to settle the contents of a barrel or bag by shaking it.

7. To determine, as something which is exposed to doubt or question; to free from unscertainty or wavering; to make sure, firm, or constant; to establish; to compose; to quiet; as, to settle the mind when agitated; to settle questions of law; to settle the succession to a throne; to settle an allowance.

It will settle the wavering, and confirm the doubtful. --Swift.

8. To adjust, as something in discussion; to make up; to compose; to pacify; as, to settle a quarrel.

9. To adjust, as accounts; to liquidate; to balance; as, to settle an account.

10. Hence, to pay; as, to settle a bill. [Colloq.] --Abbott.

11. To plant with inhabitants; to colonize; to people; as, the French first settled Canada; the Puritans settled New England; Plymouth was settled in 1620.

To settle on or upon, to confer upon by permanent grant; to assure to. "I . . . have settled upon him a good annuity." --Addison.

To settle the land (Naut.), to cause it to sink, or appear lower, by receding from it.

Syn: To fix; establish; regulate; arrange; compose; adjust; determine; decide.

Settle

Set"tle\, v. i. 1. To become fixed or permanent; to become stationary; to establish one's self or itself; to assume a lasting form, condition, direction, or the like, in place of a temporary or changing state.

The wind came about and settled in the west. --Bacon.

Chyle . . . runs through all the intermediate colors until it settles in an intense red. --Arbuthnot.

2. To fix one's residence; to establish a dwelling place or home; as, the Saxons who settled in Britain.

3. To enter into the married state, or the state of a householder.

As people marry now and settle. --Prior.

4. To be established in an employment or profession; as, to settle in the practice of law.

5. To become firm, dry, and hard, as the ground after the effects of rain or frost have disappeared; as, the roads settled late in the spring.

6. To become clear after being turbid or obscure; to clarify by depositing matter held in suspension; as, the weather settled; wine settles by standing.

A government, on such occasions, is always thick before it settles. --Addison.

7. To sink to the bottom; to fall to the bottom, as dregs of a liquid, or the sediment of a reserveir.

8. To sink gradually to a lower level; to subside, as the foundation of a house, etc.

9. To become calm; to cease from agitation.

Till the fury of his highness settle, Come not before him. --Shak.

10. To adjust differences or accounts; to come to an agreement; as, he has settled with his creditors.

11. To make a jointure for a wife.

He sighs with most success that settles well. --Garth.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : settle
Spanish: instalar, colocar,
German: sich niederlassen,
Japanese: 落着く
More Translations »

settle  (v.)
"come to rest," O.E. setlan, from setl "a seat" (see settle (n.)). Sense of "establish a permanent residence" first recorded 1627; that of "decide" is 1621. Meaning "reconcile" (a quarrel, differences, etc.) perhaps is infl. by M.E. sahtlen "to reconcile," from O.E. saht "reconciliation," from O.N. satt "reconciliation." Settled "firmly fixed" is attested from 1556.

settle  (n.)
"long bench," O.E. setl "a seat, position, abode," related to sittan "to sit," from P.Gmc. *setla- (cf. M.L.G., M.Du. setel, Du. zetel, Ger. Sessel, Goth. sitls), from PIE *sedla- (cf. L. sella "seat, chair," O.C.S. sedlo "saddle," O.E. sadol "saddle"), from base *sed- "to sit" (see sedentary).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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settle

To complete a securities transaction.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Main Entry: set·tle
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: set·tled; set·tling
transitive verb 1 : to resolve conclusively <settle a question of law>
2 : to establish or secure permanently settled legal principle>
3 : CLOSE <settle the sale of securities> <settle the estate>
4 : to resolve a disagreement about (a court order) settle the order had been conducted —Saba v. Gray, 314 North Western Reporter, Second Series 597 (1981)>
5 a : to fix (a price) by mutual agreement b : to conclude (a lawsuit) by entering into an agreement negotiated by the parties usually out of court c : to close (as an account) by payment; also : to close by compromise and payment of less than the full amount claimed or due intransitive verb 1 : to conclude a lawsuit by entering into an agreement settle out of court>
2 : to make a settlement of a transfer of funds
3 : to adjust differences or accounts <settled with his creditors>
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Main Entry: set·tle
Pronunciation: 'set-&l
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: set·tled; set·tling
transitivesenses
, of an animal : IMPREGNATE 1a settle intransitive senses
, of ananimal : CONCEIVE
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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settle

long wooden bench with backrest and arms, designed to seat several people. Originating in Europe in the 10th century, it was apparently derived from the chest, a resemblance often retained, with additional elements based on the monastic choir stall. It could be used for a variety of purposes: as a seat, a bed, a chest, and, in examples with a hinged backrest that can be turned down to rest on the arms, a table. Other additions to the basic shape were a footrest and sconces at the side or back to accommodate candles. The height of the backrest varied considerably and sometimes extended down to the floor. Both back and sides were usually paneled or ornamented (or both) with traditional carved patterns

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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