setout

1 of 2

noun

set·​out ˈset-ˌau̇t 

1

a(1)

: array, display

(2)

: arrangement, layout

b

: buffet, spread

c

: turnout sense 5

2

: party, entertainment

3

: beginning, outset

set out

2 of 2

verb

set out; setting out; sets out

transitive verb

1

a

: to arrange and present graphically or systematically

b

: to mark out (something, such as a design) : lay out the plan of

2

: to state, describe, or recite at length

distributed copies of a pamphlet setting out his ideas in full

—S. F. Mason

3

: to begin with a definite purpose : intend, undertake

intransitive verb

: to start out on a course, a journey, or a career

set out across the country

Synonyms

Noun

• arrangement
• configuration
• conformation
• format
• formation
• layout
• setup

Verb

• delineate
• depict
• describe
• draw
• image
• limn
• paint
• picture
• portray
• render
• sketch

Examples of setout in a Sentence

Noun

the setout of the stations at the polling place was a little confusing

Verb

in his inaugural address, the president set out his vision for the nation over the next four years

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Those talks had started in early 2022, when Navalny’s allies set out to arrange a prisoner swap, inviting Russia to trade him for someone locked up in the West. —Simon Shuster / Vilnius, TIME, 17 Apr. 2024

At two-thirty the next morning, Donnelly set out again for Manly alone, to kayak under a full moon—one of his last voyages, because a week and a half later forty-mile-an-hour winds blew the lake two miles north. —Meg Bernhard, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024

As the police investigation proceeded, the group which set out that day looking for Hurt waited, strategizing the next steps in their search. —Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 14 Apr. 2024

The authors set out to preserve the history of Terminal Island — not just the Japanese American village notoriously uprooted by government order, but also the land’s past as a resort, artists colony and more. —Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024

Pushed by Congress, the federal government set out to simplify this year's FAFSA, but thanks to the bumpy rollout of those fixes, completion of the form was down 40% among high school seniors through the end of March according to a tracker from a National College Attainment Network. —Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 11 Apr. 2024

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority sought to tackle the problem a decade ago by setting out rat contraceptives in the subway. —Emma G. Fitzsimmons, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024

Now, a special team of detectives sets out to solve horrific murders, after two victims are found in the otherwise peaceful German countryside. —Marta Balaga, Variety, 7 Apr. 2024

Of course, doctors and nurses do not deliberately set out to hurt patients—far from it. —TIME, 4 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1807, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Kids Definition

set out

verb

1

: to begin with a definite purpose : undertake

deliberately set out to win

2

: to start out on a course, a journey, or a career

set out to be a doctor

set out for Spain