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Entry 25 senses · 3 variants Webster, 1913

Settle

/sĕtʹəl/ · Set·tle · IPA /ˈsɛtəl/
01 n. A seat of any kind.
  1. 1.
    A seat of any kind.[Obs.]
  2. 2.
    A bench; especially, a bench with a high back.
  3. 3.
    A place made lower than the rest; a wide step or platform lower than some other part.
    “And from the bottom upon the ground, even to the lower settle, shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit.” — Ezek. xliii. 14.
Phrases & compounds
Settle bed — a bed convertible into a seat.
02 v. t. To place in a fixed or permanent condition; to make firm, steady, or stable; to establish; to fix; esp., to establish in life; to fix in bu…
imp. & p. p. Settled; p. pr. & vb. n. Settling
  1. 1.
    To place in a fixed or permanent condition; to make firm, steady, or stable; to establish; to fix; esp., to establish in life; to fix in business, in a home, or the like.
    “And he settled his countenance steadfastly upon him, until he was ashamed.” — 2 Kings viii. 11. (Rev. Ver.)
    “The father thought the time drew on Of setting in the world his only son.” — Dryden.
  2. 2.
    To establish in the pastoral office; to ordain or install as pastor or rector of a church, society, or parish; as, to settle a minister.[U. S.]
  3. 3.
    To cause to be no longer in a disturbed condition; to render quiet; to still; to calm; to compose.
    “God settled then the huge whale-bearing lake.” — Chapman.
    “Hoping that sleep might settle his brains.” — Bunyan.
  4. 4.
    To clear of dregs and impurities by causing them to sink; to render pure or clear; -- said of a liquid; as, to settle coffee, or the grounds of coffee.
  5. 5.
    To restore or bring to a smooth, dry, or passable condition; -- said of the ground, of roads, and the like; as, clear weather settles the roads.
  6. 6.
    To cause to sink; to lower; to depress; hence, also, to render close or compact; as, to settle the contents of a barrel or bag by shaking it.
  7. 7.
    To determine, as something which is exposed to doubt or question; to free from unscertainty or wavering; to make sure, firm, or constant; to establish; to compose; to quiet; as, to settle the mind when agitated; to settle questions of law; to settle the succession to a throne; to settle an allowance.
    “It will settle the wavering, and confirm the doubtful.” — Swift.
  8. 8.
    To adjust, as something in discussion; to make up; to compose; to pacify; as, to settle a quarrel.
  9. 9.
    To adjust, as accounts; to liquidate; to balance; as, to settle an account.
  10. 10.
    Hence, to pay; as, to settle a bill.[Colloq.]
  11. 11.
    To plant with inhabitants; to colonize; to people; as, the French first settled Canada; the Puritans settled New England; Plymouth was settled in 1620.
Phrases & compounds
To settle on — to confer upon by permanent grant; to assure to.
To settle the land — to cause it to sink, or appear lower, by receding from it.
Syn. To fix; establish; regulate; arrange; compose; adjust; determine; decide.
03 v. i. To become fixed or permanent; to become stationary; to establish one's self or itself; to assume a lasting form, condition, direction, or t…
  1. 1.
    To become fixed or permanent; to become stationary; to establish one's self or itself; to assume a lasting form, condition, direction, or the like, in place of a temporary or changing state.
    “The wind came about and settled in the west.” — Bacon.
    “Chyle . . . runs through all the intermediate colors until it settles in an intense red.” — Arbuthnot.
  2. 2.
    To fix one's residence; to establish a dwelling place or home; as, the Saxons who settled in Britain.
  3. 3.
    To enter into the married state, or the state of a householder.
    “As people marry now and settle.” — Prior.
  4. 4.
    To be established in an employment or profession; as, to settle in the practice of law.
  5. 5.
    To become firm, dry, and hard, as the ground after the effects of rain or frost have disappeared; as, the roads settled late in the spring.
  6. 6.
    To become clear after being turbid or obscure; to clarify by depositing matter held in suspension; as, the weather settled; wine settles by standing.
    “A government, on such occasions, is always thick before it settles.” — Addison.
  7. 7.
    To sink to the bottom; to fall to the bottom, as dregs of a liquid, or the sediment of a reserveir.
  8. 8.
    To sink gradually to a lower level; to subside, as the foundation of a house, etc.
  9. 9.
    To become calm; to cease from agitation.
    “Till the fury of his highness settle, Come not before him.” — Shak.
  10. 10.
    To adjust differences or accounts; to come to an agreement; as, he has settled with his creditors.
  11. 11.
    To make a jointure for a wife.
    “He sighs with most success that settles well.” — Garth.