1
: a checking of progress
4
: a placing of a face of a building on a line some distance to the rear of the building line or of the wall below
also
: the area produced by a setback
5
: automatic scheduled adjustment to a lower temperature setting of a thermostat
6
: the distance of a structure or other feature (such as a well or septic system) from the property line or other feature
Synonyms
Examples of setback in a Sentence
Noun
Despite some early setbacks, they eventually became a successful company.
the colonists persevered despite suffering setbacks that would have discouraged lesser souls
Recent Examples on the Web
Scott McLean, CNN, 1 Apr. 2024
In a setback to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party, the mayor of Istanbul is headed for re-election, beating back a broad campaign by the president and his government.
—Ben Hubbard, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2024
Ollie knows that despite their successes, setbacks are bound to happen — and should be embraced as a family unit.
—Caitlin Keating, Peoplemag, 30 Mar. 2024
Sixto Sanchez shows promise in his MLB return After three trying years including a pair of shoulder surgeries and his share of setbacks in between, right-handed pitcher Sixto Sanchez finally returned to an MLB mound on Thursday.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 29 Mar. 2024
The first step to overcoming this is to embrace uncertainty as an opportunity for growth and innovation rather than a setback.
—Bianca Barratt, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Fewer than 3,000 were made before the company went under when its battery supplier went bankrupt, among other setbacks.
—Laurence Darmiento, Los Angeles Times, 28 Mar. 2024
In surprise move, FDA calls for advisory committee on Lilly’s Alzheimer’s drug
Despite the setbacks with anti-amyloid treatment, people taking these drugs benefit from slower disease progression and enjoy more time in a mild stage of the illness.
—Katherine O'Malley, STAT, 27 Mar. 2024
The report proved to be yet another setback as X sought to win back big brands and their ad dollars, X's main source of revenue.
—CBS News, 25 Mar. 2024
Simone McCarthy, CNN, 10 Mar. 2024
Part of the problem was an end to emergency funds for a supplemental nutrition assistance program, which set back families that were depending on the federal program for food.
—The Enquirer, 3 Mar. 2024
President Biden is facing new pressure to block Nippon Steel’s acquisition of the iconic manufacturer U.S. Steel, this time from environmental groups that say the tie-up would set back America’s efforts to curb climate change.
—Jim Tankersley, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2024
But now Democratic lawmakers are joining Republicans in saying that the move is unfair to their constituents and will set back energy conservation.
—Calmatters, Orange County Register, 1 Feb. 2024
As a result, all 50 of the accommodations that dot the perimeter of the island have been carefully set back from the oceanfront so as not to disrupt the animals that rely on being able to nip from sea to jungle with haste.
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 15 Mar. 2024
The military alliance expects a record 18 of its 31 member states to spend at least 2% of their gross domestic product on defense this year, a funding target set back in 2014, when Russia annexed a part of Ukraine.
—Anna Cooban, CNN, 24 Feb. 2024
The crisis has set back available shipping routes by more than a century.
—Tribune News Service, Hartford Courant, 10 Jan. 2024
The start of the exam was set back at some test centers, as students had problems connecting to the Wi-Fi.
—Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
Noun
But his presence is felt in mayoral election The setback for the AK Party came almost a year after Erdogan was re-elected as president in a knife-edge May election, defeating opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu in a close runoff vote.
—Scott McLean, CNN, 1 Apr. 2024
In a setback to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party, the mayor of Istanbul is headed for re-election, beating back a broad campaign by the president and his government.
—Ben Hubbard, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2024
Ollie knows that despite their successes, setbacks are bound to happen — and should be embraced as a family unit.
—Caitlin Keating, Peoplemag, 30 Mar. 2024
Sixto Sanchez shows promise in his MLB return After three trying years including a pair of shoulder surgeries and his share of setbacks in between, right-handed pitcher Sixto Sanchez finally returned to an MLB mound on Thursday.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 29 Mar. 2024
The first step to overcoming this is to embrace uncertainty as an opportunity for growth and innovation rather than a setback.
—Bianca Barratt, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Fewer than 3,000 were made before the company went under when its battery supplier went bankrupt, among other setbacks.
—Laurence Darmiento, Los Angeles Times, 28 Mar. 2024
In surprise move, FDA calls for advisory committee on Lilly’s Alzheimer’s drug
Despite the setbacks with anti-amyloid treatment, people taking these drugs benefit from slower disease progression and enjoy more time in a mild stage of the illness.
—Katherine O'Malley, STAT, 27 Mar. 2024
The report proved to be yet another setback as X sought to win back big brands and their ad dollars, X's main source of revenue.
—CBS News, 25 Mar. 2024
Verb
That could open a potentially major opportunity for Xi, whose close ties with Putin and refusal to condemn his invasion have damaged China’s relationship with Europe and set back its longtime bid to drive a wedge between Europe and the United States.
—Simone McCarthy, CNN, 10 Mar. 2024
Part of the problem was an end to emergency funds for a supplemental nutrition assistance program, which set back families that were depending on the federal program for food.
—The Enquirer, 3 Mar. 2024
President Biden is facing new pressure to block Nippon Steel’s acquisition of the iconic manufacturer U.S. Steel, this time from environmental groups that say the tie-up would set back America’s efforts to curb climate change.
—Jim Tankersley, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2024
But now Democratic lawmakers are joining Republicans in saying that the move is unfair to their constituents and will set back energy conservation.
—Calmatters, Orange County Register, 1 Feb. 2024
As a result, all 50 of the accommodations that dot the perimeter of the island have been carefully set back from the oceanfront so as not to disrupt the animals that rely on being able to nip from sea to jungle with haste.
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 15 Mar. 2024
The military alliance expects a record 18 of its 31 member states to spend at least 2% of their gross domestic product on defense this year, a funding target set back in 2014, when Russia annexed a part of Ukraine.
—Anna Cooban, CNN, 24 Feb. 2024
The crisis has set back available shipping routes by more than a century.
—Tribune News Service, Hartford Courant, 10 Jan. 2024
The start of the exam was set back at some test centers, as students had problems connecting to the Wi-Fi.
—Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'setback.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near setback
Cite this Entry
“Setback.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/setback. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
setback
noun
set·back
ˈset-ˌbak 
: a slowing of progress : a temporary defeat
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