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

to set down

4 3.2
To take people or goods off a vehicle and leave them at a place
  • phrasal verb
  • /sɛt daʊn/
translation icon : 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
722 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
400 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
125 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 put down
vsto set down
45 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 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 unlade
vsto set down
  • Archaic
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
572 1.0

To put things onto a vehicle or into a container

to embark
18 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
4 3.2
to leave
∞ 1.7
to drop off
400 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.