settle Meaning, Definition & Usage

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

WordNet

Set"tle noun
Etymology
OE. setel, setil, a seat, AS. setl: akin to OHG. sezzal, G. sessel, Goth. sitls, and E. sit. See Sit.
Definitions
  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.
Set"tle transitive verb
Etymology
OE. setlen, AS. setlan. 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.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Settled ; present participle & verbal noun Settling
Definitions
  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. Syn. -- To fix; establish; regulate; arrange; compose; adjust; determine; decide.
Set"tle intransitive verb
Definitions
  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 1913