Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

set-aside

noun \ ˈset-ə-ˌsīd \
See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

Definition of set-aside

1 : something (such as a portion of receipts or production) that is set aside for a specified purpose
2 : a program requiring a percentage of opportunities (as for jobs or funding) to be reserved for an underrepresented group

See set-aside defined for English-language learners

First Known Use of set-aside

1943

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year
NEW! Time Traveler

SET-ASIDE Defined for English Language Learners

set-aside

noun

Definition of set-aside for English Language Learners

  • : something that is saved and used for a particular purpose; especially : a program that requires jobs, money, etc., to be saved for people who have not been given as much as others in the past

  • : a plan in the European Union in which farmers are paid not to grow a certain crop on a piece of land so that the price for that crop will not decrease too much

  • : a piece of land on which the crop is not grown

Law Dictionary

set aside

transitive verb

legal Definition of set aside

1 : to disagree with and overturn (a decision or act of a lower tribunal) upon review : overrule, vacate
  • set aside the decree
2 : to deprive of legal effect or force : annul, void
  • may set aside the contract

Learn More about set-aside

  1. See words that rhyme with set-aside

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up set-aside? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

raillery

play

good-natured ridicule

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. embolization 'the process by which a blood vessel or organ is obstructed by a material mass'

  2. oleaginous 'marked by an offensively ingratiating manner or quality'

  3. pansexual 'sexual desire or attraction...not limited to a particular gender identity or sexual orientation'

  4. symbiote 'an organism living in symbiosis'

  5. charlatan 'faker or fraud'

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

set-aside

Test Your Vocabulary

Words Used by Nabokov Quiz

  • image1676440788
  • Choose the best definition or synonym for the word in bold: "There are some eructations that sound like cheers—at least, mine did." Lolita
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Add Diction

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

image1481409085
9 Words from the Magical Realm

When language is magic

alt-5afefa13cc811
A Field Guide to British Noble Titles

Know your Duchess from your Baroness

image1720821498
7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

When it doesn't go as planned

alt-5afd9816817c1
Putting the History of 'Limelight' Center Stage

It's, ahem, an illuminating story.

Ask the Editors

video-ghost-words
Ghost Word

The story of an imaginary word that managed to sneak past our editors and enter the dictionary.

image1760257654
2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

How we chose 'feminism'

video-literally
Literally

How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts.

video-his-or-her
Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

The awkward case of 'his or her'

Word Games

image1676440788
Words Used by Nabokov Quiz

How familiar are you with Nabokov’s unfamiliar vocabulary?

Take the quiz
cow-coming-home
Farm Idioms Quiz

Not your children's farm quiz.

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
Add Diction
Add Diction

Build a chain of words by adding one letter at a time.

Play the game