7. To have a certain direction in motion; to flow; to move on; to tend; as, the current sets to the north; the
tide sets to the windward.
8. To begin to move; to go out or forth; to start; — now followed by out.
The king is set from London.
Shak. 9. To indicate the position of game; — said of a dog; as, the dog sets well; also, to hunt game by the aid
of a setter.
10. To apply one's self; to undertake earnestly; — now followed by out.
If he sets industriously and sincerely to perform the commands of Christ, he can have no ground of
doubting but it shall prove successful to him.
Hammond. 11. To fit or suit one; to sit; as, the coat sets well. [Colloquially used, but improperly, for sit.]
The use of the verb set for sit in such expressions as, the hen is setting on thirteen eggs; a setting
hen, etc., although colloquially common, and sometimes tolerated in serious writing, is not to be approved.
To set about, to commence; to begin. — To set forward, to move or march; to begin to march; to
advance. — To set forth, to begin a journey. — To set in. (a) To begin; to enter upon a particular
state; as, winter set in early. (b) To settle one's self; to become established. "When the weather was
set in to be very bad." Addison. (c) To flow toward the shore; — said of the tide. — To set off. (a)
To enter upon a journey; to start. (b) (Typog.) To deface or soil the next sheet; — said of the ink on a
freshly printed sheet, when another sheet comes in contact with it before it has had time to dry. — To
set on or upon. (a) To begin, as a journey or enterprise; to set about.
He that would seriously set upon the search of truth.
Locke. (b) To assault; to make an attack. Bacon.
Cassio hath here been set on in the dark.
Shak. —
To set out, to begin a journey or course; as, to set out for London, or from London; to set out in
business;to set out in life or the world. — To set to, to apply one's self to. — To set up. (a) To
begin business or a scheme of life; as, to set up in trade; to set up for one's self. (b) To profess openly; to
make pretensions.
Those men who set up for mortality without regard to religion, are generally but virtuous in part.
Swift.
Set
(Set) a.
1. Fixed in position; immovable; rigid; as, a set line; a set countenance.
2. Firm; unchanging; obstinate; as, set opinions or prejudices.
3. Regular; uniform; formal; as, a set discourse; a set battle. "The set phrase of peace." Shak.
4. Established; prescribed; as, set forms of prayer.
5. Adjusted; arranged; formed; adapted.
Set hammer. (a) A hammer the head of which is not tightly fastened upon the handle, but may be
reversed. Knight. (b) A hammer with a concave face which forms a die for shaping anything, as the
end of a bolt, rivet, etc. — Set line, a line to which a number of baited hooks are attached, and which,
supported by floats and properly secured, may be left unguarded during the absence of the fisherman.
