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👜 To put down 📝 To write officially 🛬 To land 🚐 To drop off
to set down

to set down

1 3.2
To take people or goods off a vehicle and leave them at a place
  • phrasal verb
  • /sɛt daʊn/
: dejar
  • After the long journey, the pilot set down the plane on the runway safely.

Examples

  • At this moment, a young slave woman emerged from the cave carrying a battered leather box, which she set down on the ground.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • They set down their bikes and sat on the grass with her as she relayed her experience.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Drive him slow and set him down real easy, partner.

    Pillow Talk (1959)

  • Once you are outside, set her down.

    Blog text (29)

  • You will need an extra set of hands while you change your clothes and will need to set the baby down.

    Blog text (29)

  • I will set down Betsy right here.

    The Demented (2021)

  • " Field's police carriage set us down a short distance from Covent Garden.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The driver carefully set down the passengers at the bus stop before leaving.

  • Once they reached the campsite, they set down their luggage and started to unpack.

Synonyms

to drop
vsto set down
603 2.7

To take someone or something from a vehicle and leave them at a place

is the same action described with different wording
to drop off
vsto set down
579 3.0

To take someone or something to a place and leave them there

focuses on removing from a vehicle, not on delivery intent
to unload
vsto set down
103 2.6

Take things or people out of a vehicle like a truck

also describes taking people out and leaving them at a place
to offload
vsto set down
11 3.9

To take goods off a vehicle or container

can also be used for removing passengers and leaving them at locations
to put down
vsto set down
1 3.4

To leave people or things at a place from a vehicle

is the general term for removing and leaving at a place
to unlade
vsto set down
  • Archaic
1 9.9

To take goods off a vehicle like a ship

covers removal of both cargo and people to leave at a place

Antonyms

to load
421 1.0

To put things onto a vehicle or into a container

to embark
6 4.4

To get on a ship, plane, or other vehicle to begin a journey

How Carefully

to stow
57 5.8
to place
∞ 1.0
to set down
1 3.2
to leave
692 1.7
to drop off
579 3.0

Surface Forms

set down infinitive
set down past
set down past participle
setting down present participle
sets down third person singular

Morphology

set + down

The meaning 'to remove from a vehicle and leave at a particular place' is directly derivable from combining a putting/placing sense of 'set' with 'down' (to a lower/place position). This verb+particle composition is a common, cross-linguistic pattern (place/put + down = deposit/drop off), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will likely understand it.

Etymology

Set down comes from the image of taking people or boxes out of a vehicle and putting them down at a place, like setting a bag by a door. So, it means 'to leave' or 'drop off' someone or something.