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to set out

to set out

66 2.4
To begin a journey to go to another place
  • phrasal verb
  • /sɛt aʊt/
translation icon : salir
  • Histories of countries cover explorers who set out to find new lands.
  • set out on a journey
  • set out in the morning
  • explorers who set out

But I, I, you know, you know, when Magellan set out, he didn't know he could get around the world.

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Examples

  • My own heroes were another group of explorers, who set out with more modest conquests in mind.

    Academic text (2003)
  • So I set out in search of a new home.

  • But we set out and we said we're going to go for it.

  • No matter how far away they live, they set out on their journey home.

    Academic text (1998)
  • And set out for the North, having said farewell, perhaps, never to see us again.

  • They set out across the desert this afternoon.

  • A team of physicists from the UK set out to track down the origin of this time asymmetry and found quite a surprise.

  • ♪ In 2019, I set out on an artistic journey.

  • And so for years I set out traveling the globe trying to find treatments to compensate for the chemo or radiation.

  • Each spring in Alaska, large herds of caribou set out on a long journey.

Synonyms

to go
vsto set out
1.0

To move from one place to another, physically or in meaning

is narrower, focusing on the initial act of departing to travel
to start
vsto set out
1.0

To begin an action, event or process

is specifically about beginning travel rather than any other beginning
to travel
vsto set out
1.0

To go from one place to another, often for work or pleasure

refers mainly to the initial leaving part of that broader movement
to go out
vsto set out
1.0

Leave a place to do a task, for example to help people

is about starting a journey rather than short outings or errands
to get going
vsto set out
422 2.3

To start doing something or to leave

is concentrated on beginning a journey rather than general activity
to take off
vsto set out
273 3.2

To leave a place quickly, often to travel somewhere else

describes leaving to travel without implying suddenness
to travel to
vsto set out
263 1.0

To go to another place for work or pleasure

concerns the act of beginning a journey rather than the full travel
to depart
vsto set out
176 1.3

To leave a place to start a journey

focuses specifically on beginning a journey rather than any departure
to head out
vsto set out
167 2.5

To leave a place to start a trip

is the standard expression for beginning travel without casual tone
to hit the road
vsto set out
  • Informal
90 2.5

To leave a place and start a journey by car or bus

covers starting travel in any way, not limited to road journeys
to set off
vsto set out
57 2.4

To begin a journey toward a place

is the everyday phrase for beginning travel from one place to another
to journey
vsto set out
40 2.6

To travel from one place to another over a long distance

emphasizes the moment of leaving rather than the whole long trip
to start out
vsto set out
39 2.5

To leave a place to go to another place

is the general act of setting off on a journey
to go forth
vsto set out
  • Archaic
24 8.4

To leave a place and move away

is the common, everyday way to describe beginning a journey
to depart for
vsto set out
14 2.5

To leave one place to go to another place

is about starting to travel without naming the exact destination
to set forth
vsto set out
3 3.9

To begin a journey to a place

is the neutral, common way to talk about starting travel
to venture forth
vsto set out
3 6.2

To go somewhere or do something even when it is risky

is the neutral action of beginning travel without risk implication

Antonyms

1.0

To remain in one place and not leave

413 1.0

An act of coming back to a place or state

How Purposeful

to strike out
11 4.1
to embark
117 4.7
to set out
66 2.4
to leave
1.0

Surface Forms

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

Morphology

set + out

The verb 'set' (to put/place) combined with the particle 'out' (outward, distributed) yields a clear compositional sense of placing or laying items outward—i.e., arranging or laying out objects; this is a regular motion/placement + particle pattern that B1 learners can readily infer. The extension to organizing ideas or information is a systematic metaphorical transfer from physical layout (common cross-linguistically), so the core meaning remains predictable from the parts.

Etymology

The phrasal verb set out comes from a simple travel image: you set yourself out from home and step onto the road. So, set out means 'to begin a journey'.