▸ settle on PHRASAL VERB If you settle on a particular thing, you choose it after considering other possible choices. □ [V P n] I finally settled on a Mercedes estate.
▸ settle up PHRASAL VERB When you settle up , you pay a bill or a debt. □ [V P ] When we approached the till to settle up, he reduced our bill by 50 per cent.
set|tled /se t ə ld/
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you have a settled way of life, you stay in one place, in one job, or with one person, rather than moving around or changing. □ He decided to lead a more settled life with his partner.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A settled situation or system stays the same all the time. □ There has been a period of settled weather.
set|tle|ment ◆◆◇ /se t ə lmənt/ (settlements )
1 N‑COUNT A settlement is an official agreement between two sides who were involved in a conflict or argument. □ Our objective must be to secure a peace settlement. □ [+ of ] They are not optimistic about a settlement of the eleven-year conflict.
2 N‑COUNT A settlement is an agreement to end a disagreement or dispute without going to a court of law, for example by offering someone money. □ She accepted an out-of-court settlement of £4,000.
3 N‑UNCOUNT The settlement of a debt is the act of paying back money that you owe. □ [+ of ] …ways to delay the settlement of debts.
4 N‑COUNT A settlement is a place where people have come to live and have built homes. □ [+ of ] The village is a settlement of just fifty houses. COLLOCATIONS settlement NOUN
1
noun + settlement : dispute, divorce, pay, peace
adjective + settlement : amicable; political
verb + settlement : achieve, announce, reach, secure; negotiate, propose
2
noun + settlement : cash; lawsuit, libel
adjective + settlement : confidential, out-of-court
verb + settlement : accept, agree, negotiate
set|tler /se tələ r / (settlers ) N‑COUNT Settlers are people who go to live in a new country. □ [+ from ] The village was founded by settlers from the Volga region.
se t-to (set-tos ) N‑COUNT A set-to is a dispute or fight. [INFORMAL ] □ [+ between ] This was the subject of a bit of a set-to between Smith and his record company.
se t-top bo x (set-top boxes ) N‑COUNT A set-top box is a piece of equipment that rests on top of your television and receives digital television signals.
se t-up ◆◆◇ (set-ups ) also setup
1 N‑COUNT A particular set-up is a particular system or way of organizing something. [INFORMAL ] □ It appears to be an idyllic domestic set-up. □ [+ of ] I gradually got rather disillusioned with the whole setup of the university.
2 N‑COUNT If you describe a situation as a set-up , you mean that people have planned it in order to deceive you or to make it look as if you have done something wrong. [INFORMAL ] □ He was asked to pick somebody up and bring them to a party, not realizing it was a setup.
3 N‑SING The set-up of computer hardware or software is the process of installing it and making it ready to use. [COMPUTING ] □ The worst part of the set-up is the poor instruction manual.
sev|en ◆◆◆ /se v ə n/ (sevens ) NUM Seven is the number 7. □ Sarah and Ella have been friends for seven years.
sev|en|teen ◆◆◆ /se v ə ntiː n/ (seventeens ) NUM Seventeen is the number 17. □ Jenny is seventeen years old.
sev|en|teenth ◆◆◇ /se v ə ntiː nθ/ (seventeenths )
1 ORD The seventeenth item in a series is the one that you count as number seventeen. □ She gave birth to her daughter just after her seventeenth birthday.
2 FRACTION A seventeenth is one of seventeen equal parts of something.
sev|enth ◆◆◇ /se v ə nθ/ (sevenths )
1 ORD The seventh item in a series is the one that you count as number seven. □ I was the seventh child in a family of 11.
2 FRACTION A seventh is one of seven equal parts of something. □ A million people died, a seventh of the population.
Sev|enth Day Ad|vent|ist /se v ə nθ de I ædve nt I st/ (Seventh Day Adventists )
1 ADJ [ADJ n] Seventh Day Adventist churches are churches that believe that Jesus Christ will return very soon, and that have Saturday as their holy day.
2 N‑COUNT A Seventh Day Adventist is a member of the Seventh Day Adventist church.
se v|enth hea v|en N‑UNCOUNT [in N ] If you say that you are in seventh heaven , you mean that you are in a state of complete happiness. [INFORMAL ]
sev|en|ti|eth ◆◆◇ /se v ə ntiəθ/ ORD The seventieth item in a series is the one that you count as number seventy. □ Richard Wagner died at Venice, in his seventieth year.
sev|en|ty ◆◆◆ /se v ə nti/ (seventies )
1 NUM Seventy is the number 70. □ Seventy people were killed.
2 N‑PLURAL When you talk about the seventies , you are referring to numbers between 70 and 79. For example, if you are in your seventies , you are aged between 70 and 79. If the temperature is in the seventies , it is between 70 and 79. □ It's a long way to go for two people in their seventies.