set down

British  

verb

1. to write down or record

2. to judge, consider, or regard

   he set him down as an idiot

3. (foll by to) to ascribe; attribute

   his attitude was set down to his illness

4. to reprove; rebuke

5. to snub; dismiss

6. to allow (passengers) to alight from a bus, taxi, etc

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set down Idioms  

1. Place in a lower position, as in Set the baby down here , or Set the bags down on the hall table . [Late 1400s]

2. Put in writing, record, as in Just set down all the facts as you remember them . [Second half of 1500s]

3. Regard, consider, as in Just set him down as a fool . [Late 1700s]

4. Assign to a cause, ascribe, as in Let's set down his error to inexperience . [Early 1800s]

5. Land an aircraft, as in The pilot set the plane down hard on the runway . Also see put down .

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Example Sentences

In short, Kagan would have resolved this case as a good textualist, operating within the methodological terms set down by the majority’s opinion, minus the major-questions thumb on the scale.

From Slate • Mar. 4, 2026

The British number four, who had dropped to 120th in the world rankings, came back strongly from a set down in the final to beat German Korpatsch 5-7 6-2 6-1.

From BBC • Feb. 7, 2026

I’m not sure how well I measure up, but I do keep a tight, ring-free dining room station and catch a glimmer of my father whenever I set down my glass.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

A relieved world number three Alexander Zverev said he was encouraged by the way he responded from a set down on Sunday to reach the Australian Open second round.

From Barron's • Jan. 18, 2026

I set down my laptop bag on the dining room table, which is also both the living room table and the kitchen table.

From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera

Related Words

• authorize
• base
• build
• create
• enact
• form
• found
• inaugurate
• install
• institute
• provide
• put
• settle
• start