Adjacent Words

Settle definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SET'TLE, n. [L. sedile. See Set.] A seat or bench; something to sit on.
SET'TLE, v.t. [from set.]
1. To place in a permanent condition after wandering or fluctuation.
I will settle you after your old estates. Ezek 36.
2. To fix; to establish; to make permanent in any place.
I will settle him in my house and in my kingdom forever. 1 Chronicles 17.
3. To establish in business or way of life; as, to settle a son in trade.
4. To marry; as, to settle a doughter.
5. To establish; to confirm.
Her will alone could settle or revoke. Prior.
6. To determine what is uncertain; to establish; to free from doubt; as, to settle questions or points of law. The supreme court have settled the question.
7. To fix; to establish; to make certain or permanent; as, to settle the succession to the thron in a particular family. So we speak of settled habits and settled opinions.
8. To fix or establish; not to suffer to doubt or waver.
It will settle teh wavering and confirm the doubtful. Swift.
9. To make close or compact.
Cover ant-hills up that the rain may settle the turf before the spring.
Mortimer.
10. To cause to subside after being heaved and loosened by frost; or to dry and harden after rain. Thus clear weather settles the roads.
11. To fix or establish by gifr, grant or any legal act; as, to settle a pension on an officer, or an annuity on a child.
12. To fix firmly. Settle your mind on valuable objects.
13. To couse to sink or subside, as extraneous matters in liquors. In fining wine, we add something to settle the lees.
14. To compose; to tranquilize what is disturbed; as, to settle the thoughts or mind when agitated.
15. To establish in the pastoral office; to ordain over a church and sociecty, or parish; as, to settle a minister.
16. To plant with inhabitants; to colonize. The French first settled Canada; the Puritans settled New England. Plymouth was settled in 1620. Hartford was settled in 1636. Wethersfield was the first settled town in Connecticut.
17. To adjust; to close by amicable agreement or otherwise; as, to settle a controversy or dispute by agreement; treaty or by force.
18. To adjust; to liquidate; to cause it to sink or appear lower by receding from it.
To settle the land, among seamen, to cause it to sink or appear lower by receding from it.
SET'TLE, v.i.
1. To fall to the bottom of liquor; to subside; to sind and rest on the bottom; as, lees or dregs settle. Slimy particles in water settle and form mud at the bottom of rivers.
This words is used of the extraneous matter of liquors, when it subsides spontaneously. But in chemical operations, when substances mixed or in solution are decomposed, and one component part subsides, it is said to be precipitated. But may also be said to settle.
2. To lose motion or fermentation; to deposit, as feces.
A government on such occasions, is always thick before it settles. Addison.
3. To fix one's habitation or residence. Belgians had settled on the southern coast of Britian, before the romans invaded the isle.
4. To marry and establaish a domestic state. Where subsistence is easily obtained, children settle at an early period of life.
5. To become fixed after change or fluctuation; as, the wind came about and settled in the west.
6. To become stationary; To quit a rambling or irregular course for a permanent or methodical one.
7. To become fixed or permanent; to take a lasting form or state; as a settled conviction.
Chyle- runs through the intermediate colors till it settles in an intense red.
Arbuthnot.
8. To rest; to repose.
When time hath worn out their natural vanity, and taught them discretion, their fondness settles on a proper object. Spectator.
9. To become calm calm; to cease from agitation.
Till the fury of his highness settle,
Come not before him. Shak.
10. To make a jointure for a wife.
He sighs with most success that settles well. Garth.
11. To sink by its weight; and in loose bodies, to become more compact. We say, a wall settles; A house settles upon its foundation; a mass of sand settles and becomes more firm.
12. To sink after being heaved, and to dry; as, roads settle in spring after frost and rain.
13. To be ordained and installed over a parish, church or congregation. AB was invited to settle in the first society of New Haven. ND settled in the ministry when very young.
14. To adjust differences or accounts; to come to an agreement. He has settled with his creditors.
15. To make a jointure for a wife.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a long wooden bench with a back [syn: settle, settee] v
1: settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground; "dust settled on the roofs" [syn: settle, settle down]
2: bring to an end; settle conclusively; "The case was decided"; "The judge decided the case in favor of the plaintiff"; "The father adjudicated when the sons were quarreling over their inheritance" [syn: decide, settle, resolve, adjudicate]
3: settle conclusively; come to terms; "We finally settled the argument" [syn: settle, square off, square up, determine]
4: take up residence and become established; "The immigrants settled in the Midwest" [syn: settle, locate]
5: come to terms; "After some discussion we finally made up" [syn: reconcile, patch up, make up, conciliate, settle]
6: go under, "The raft sank and its occupants drowned" [syn: sink, settle, go down, go under] [ant: float, swim]
7: become settled or established and stable in one's residence or life style; "He finally settled down" [syn: settle, root, take root, steady down, settle down]
8: become resolved, fixed, established, or quiet; "The roar settled to a thunder"; "The wind settled in the West"; "it is settling to rain"; "A cough settled in her chest"; "Her mood settled into lethargy"
9: establish or develop as a residence; "He settled the farm 200 years ago"; "This land was settled by Germans"
10: come to rest
11: arrange or fix in the desired order; "She settled the teacart"
12: accept despite lack of complete satisfaction; "We settled for a lower price"
13: end a legal dispute by arriving at a settlement; "The two parties finally settled"
14: dispose of; make a financial settlement
15: become clear by the sinking of particles; "the liquid gradually settled"
16: cause to become clear by forming a sediment (of liquids)
17: sink down or precipitate; "the mud subsides when the waters become calm" [syn: subside, settle]
18: fix firmly; "He ensconced himself in the chair" [syn: ensconce, settle]
19: get one's revenge for a wrong or an injury; "I finally settled with my old enemy" [syn: settle, get back]
20: make final; put the last touches on; put into final form; "let's finalize the proposal" [syn: finalize, finalise, settle, nail down]
21: form a community; "The Swedes settled in Minnesota"
22: come as if by falling; "Night fell"; "Silence fell" [syn: fall, descend, settle]

Merriam Webster's

I. verb (settled; settling) Etymology: Middle English, to seat, bring to rest, come to rest, from Old English setlan, from setl seat Date: 1515 transitive verb 1. to place so as to stay 2. a. to establish in residence b. to furnish with inhabitants ; colonize 3. a. to cause to pack down b. to clarify by causing dregs or impurities to sink 4. to make quiet or orderly 5. a. to fix or resolve conclusively <settle the question> b. to establish or secure permanently <settle the order of royal succession> c. to conclude (a lawsuit) by agreement between parties usually out of court d. to close (as an account) by payment often of less than is due 6. to arrange in a desired position 7. to make or arrange for final disposition of <settled his affairs> 8. of an animal impregnate intransitive verb 1. to come to rest 2. a. to sink gradually or to the bottom b. to become clear by the deposit of sediment or scum c. to become compact by sinking 3. a. to become fixed, resolved, or established <a cold settled in his chest> b. to establish a residence or colony <settled in Wisconsin> — often used with down 4. a. to become quiet or orderly b. to take up an ordered or stable life — often used with down <marry and settle down> 5. a. to adjust differences or accounts b. to come to a decision — used with on or upon <settled on a new plan> c. to conclude a lawsuit by agreement out of court 6. of an animal conceive Synonyms: see decide • settleable adjective II. noun Etymology: Middle English, place for sitting, seat, chair, from Old English setl; akin to Old High German sezzal seat, Latin sella seat, chair, Old English sittan to sit Date: 1553 a wooden bench with arms, a high solid back, and an enclosed foundation which can be used as a chest

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. v. 1 tr. & intr. (often foll. by down) establish or become established in a more or less permanent abode or way of life. 2 intr. & tr. (often foll. by down) a cease or cause to cease from wandering, disturbance, movement, etc. b adopt a regular or secure style of life. c (foll. by to) apply oneself (to work, an activity, a way of life, etc.) (settled down to writing letters). 3 a intr. sit or come down to stay for some time. b tr. cause to do this. 4 tr. & intr. bring to or attain fixity, certainty, composure, or quietness. 5 tr. determine or decide or agree upon (shall we settle a date?). 6 tr. a resolve (a dispute etc.). b deal with (a matter) finally. 7 tr. terminate (a lawsuit) by mutual agreement. 8 intr. a (foll. by for) accept or agree to (esp. an alternative not one's first choice). b (foll. by on) decide on. 9 tr. (also absol.) pay (a debt, an account, etc.). 10 intr. (as settled adj.) not likely to change for a time (settled weather). 11 tr. a aid the digestion of (food). b remedy the disordered state of (nerves, the stomach, etc.). 12 tr. a colonize. b establish colonists in. 13 intr. subside; fall to the bottom or on to a surface (the foundations have settled; wait till the sediment settles; the dust will settle). 14 intr. (of a ship) begin to sink. 15 tr. get rid of the obstruction of (a person) by argument or conflict or killing. Phrases and idioms: settle one's affairs make any necessary arrangements (e.g. write a will) when death is near. settle a person's hash see HASH(1). settle in become established in a place. settle up 1 (also absol.) pay (an account, debt, etc.). 2 finally arrange (a matter). settle with 1 pay all or part of an amount due to (a creditor). 2 get revenge on. settling day the fortnightly pay-day on the Stock Exchange. Derivatives: settleable adj. Etymology: OE setlan (as SETTLE(2)) f. Gmc 2. n. a bench with a high back and arms and often with a box fitted below the seat. Etymology: OE setl place to sit f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

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.]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

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.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

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.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(settles, settling, settled) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. If people settle an argument or problem, or if something settles it, they solve it, for example by making a decision about who is right or about what to do. They agreed to try to settle their dispute by negotiation... Tomorrow's vote is unlikely to settle the question of who will replace their leader. VERB: V n, V n 2. If people settle a legal dispute or if they settle, they agree to end the dispute without going to a court of law, for example by paying some money or by apologizing. In an attempt to settle the case, Molken has agreed to pay restitution... She got much less than she would have done if she had settled out of court... His company settled with the American authorities by paying a $200 million fine. VERB: V n, V, V with n 3. If you settle a bill or debt, you pay the amount that you owe. I settled the bill for my coffee and his two glasses of wine... They settled with Colin at the end of the evening. VERB: V n, V with n 4. If something is settled, it has all been decided and arranged. As far as we're concerned, the matter is settled... VERB: usu passive, be V-ed 5. When people settle a place or in a place, or when a government settles them there, they start living there permanently. Refugees settling in Britain suffer from a number of problems... Thirty-thousand-million dollars is needed to settle the refugees. VERB: V prep/adv, V n, also V n prep/adv, V 6. If you settle yourself somewhere or settle somewhere, you sit down or make yourself comfortable. Albert settled himself on the sofa... Jessica settled into her chair with a small sigh of relief. VERB: V pron-refl prep/adv, V prep/adv 7. If something settles or if you settle it, it sinks slowly down and becomes still. A black dust settled on the walls... Once its impurities had settled, the oil could be graded... Tap each one firmly on your work surface to settle the mixture. VERB: V prep/adv, V, V n 8. If your eyes settle on or upon something, you stop looking around and look at that thing for some time. The man let his eyes settle upon Cross's face. = rest VERB: V on/upon n 9. When birds or insects settle on something, they land on it from above. Moths flew in front of it, eventually settling on the rough painted metal. = light VERB: V on n 10. when the dust settles: see dust to settle a score: see score see also settled

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. Bench, seat, stool. II. v. a. 1. Fix, establish. 2. Decide, determine, make clear, free from doubt, confirm. 3. Adjust, regulate, arrange, compose. 4. Colonize, people. 5. Liquidate, pay, discharge, close up, balance, adjust. 6. [U. S.] Ordain as pastor. 7. Clarify, defecate, fine, clear. 8. Compose, quiet, tranquillize, calm, still, allay, pacify. 9. Set, fix, confirm. 10. Place, establish, make permanent. 11. Adjust, arrange, finish, close up. III. v. n. 1. Subside, sink, fall. 2. Rest, repose, be quiet, be tranquil, be composed. 3. Dwell, abide, inhabit, reside, plant one's self, get established. 4. Account, reckon, square accounts, satisfy all demands.

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue

To knock down or stun any one. We settled the cull by a stroke on his nob; we stunned the fellow by a blow on the head.

Moby Thesaurus

KO, abalienate, abide, accommodate, accommodate with, accord, adapt, adapt to, adjust, adjust to, affirm, afford proof of, agree on, agree with, alien, alienate, alight, alight upon, allay, amortize, anchor, answer, answer conclusively, appoint, argue down, arrange, arrange matters, ascertain, assign, assimilate to, assure, attend to, balance, barter, be guided by, beat, beat all hollow, beat hollow, becalm, bed, bend, bequeath, best, billet at, bivouac, blast, blot out, bring home to, bring to terms, bring together, bump off, burrow, calm, calm down, camp, cave, cave in, cede, certify, chart, chime in with, choose, cinch, clarify, classify, clean up, clear, clear off, clear up, climb down, clinch, close, close with, codify, colonize, come down, come down on, come to anchor, comply, comply with, compose, compound, compromise, concert, conclude, confer, confirm, conform, confound, confute, consign, contradict, controvert, convey, cook, coordinate, cop out, correct, correspond, croak, crush, decide, decline, deed, deed over, deep-dye, defeat, define, deliver, demise, demolish, demonstrate, denizen, deny, descend, descend upon, destroy, determine, devolve upon, discharge, discipline, dish, dismiss, dismiss all doubt, dismount, dispose, dispose of, dive, do for, do in, domesticate, droop, drop, drop anchor, drop on, drub, duck responsibility, dwell, embed, empeople, enfeoff, engraft, engrave, ensconce, ensure, entrench, erase, establish, establish residence, etch, evade responsibility, exchange, fall, fall in with, fall on, figure, find, find out, finish, fit, fix, fix on, fix up, floor, flop, flop down, flump, flump down, follow, follow from, found, founder, gear to, get, get at, get down, get off, give, give and take, give it to, give the business, give title to, give way, go by, go down, go fifty-fifty, gravitate, ground, gun down, hand, hand down, hand on, hand over, harmonize, have a case, head, heal the breach, hide, hit, hit upon, hive, hold good, hold water, honor, hors de combat, ice, impact, implant, impress, imprint, incline, infix, ingrain, inhabit, inscribe, install, insure, jam, keep house, knock out, lambaste, land, lapse, lather, lay, lay out, lead, lean, lick, lift, light, light upon, liquidate, live, live at, locate, lodge, lose altitude, lower, lull, make a deal, make a decision, make accounts square, make an adjustment, make certain, make concessions, make conform, make good, make no doubt, make no mistake, make out, make over, make peace, make sure, make sure of, make up, mediate, meet, meet halfway, methodize, mold, moor, move, nail down, negotiate, nest, nonplus, normalize, nose-dive, observe, off, order, organize, outclass, outdo, outfight, outgeneral, outmaneuver, outpoint, outrun, outsail, outshine, overthrow, overturn, overwhelm, pack, park, parry, pass, pass on, pass over, patch things up, patch up, pay, pay in full, pay off, pay out, pay the bill, pay the shot, pay up, people, perch, pick, pioneer, place, plan, plant, play politics, plop, plop down, plump, plunge, point, polish off, populate, precipitate, print, prove, prove to be, prove true, purpose, put, put down, put in tune, put to silence, quiet, quiet down, quieten, quit, rationalize, reach a compromise, reassure, rebut, reconcile, rectify, redeem, reduce to silence, refute, regularize, regulate, relax, relocate, remain, remove all doubt, reside, resolve, restore harmony, retire, reunite, roost, root, routinize, rub off corners, rub out, ruin, rule, sag, satisfy, scuttle, seal, seat, see that, see to it, select, sell, serve one out, set, set at rest, set down, set in, set to rights, set up housekeeping, set up shop, settle differences, settle down, settle in, settle on, settle the matter, settle the score, settle with, shape, shoot down, show, shut up, sign away, sign over, silence, sink, sink down, sit, sit down, skin, skin alive, slouch, slump, slump down, smash all opposition, smooth it over, soothe, sort out, split the difference, square, square accounts, squash, squat, squelch, stamp, stand, standardize, stay, stay at, stereotype, stick, still, straighten, straighten out, strike a balance, strike a bargain, strike root, strike upon, submerge, subside, subvert, suit, surrender, swag, synchronize, systematize, take a resolution, take care of, take residence at, take root, take the mean, take up, take up residence, tally with, tend, tend to go, thrash, torpedo, touch down, trade, tranquilize, transfer, transmit, trim, triumph over, trounce, tune, tune up, turn over, undermine, undo, unhorse, upset, waste, wedge, whip, will, wind up, wipe out, work out, worst, yield, zap