set down

verb

set down; setting down; sets down

transitive verb

1

: to cause to sit down : seat

2

: to place at rest on a surface or on the ground

3

: to suspend (a jockey) from racing

4

: to cause or allow to get off a vehicle : deliver

5

: to land (an airplane) on the ground or water

6

a

: ordain, establish

b

: to put in writing

7

a

: regard, consider

set him down as a liar

b

: attribute

Synonyms

• seat
• sit

Examples of set down in a Sentence

set the toddler down in her seat

set down the names of those in attendance

Recent Examples on the Web

Megan Mojica and Kamila Reynolds, both Madison area school bus drivers, visited the site Tuesday morning, set down some candles, and prayed with a chaplain. —Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 18 Dec. 2024

The chopper swoops through the clear blue sky along the East River and sets down on the helipad. —Rob Stein, NPR, 17 Dec. 2024

And Jago is setting down some of those building blocks quite literally, too. —Tori Latham, Robb Report, 5 Dec. 2024

Matching interests is closely related to pathos, the appeal to the emotions of the audience, and is one of the three essential elements of persuasion set down by Aristotle over two millennia ago. —Jerry Weissman, Forbes, 16 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

set down

verb

1

: to cause to sit down : seat

2

: to place at rest on a surface or on the ground

3

: to land (an airplane) on the ground or water

4

: establish sense 2

the government set down laws

5

: to put in writing