set up

Definitions

1. 1

   To make ready for use.

   • We set up the sprinkler.
2. 2

   To arrange logically.

   • Set up my CD collection.
3. 3

   To cause to happen.

   • Even a minor change can set up new bugs.
   • England's famous victory sets up a meeting with Sweden in Samara on Saturday
4. ›+ 18 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      To trap or ensnare.

      • I've got to set up that tasty rabbit.
   2. 5

      To arrange for an outcome

      To arrange for an outcome; to tamper or rig.

      • The election was set up!
   3. 6

      To prepare or get ready.

      • Used with an implied object obvious from context.
      • Give me a minute — I'm still setting up.
      • The band is setting up.
   4. 7

      To gel or harden.

      • Give the cement 24 hours to set up before walking on it.
   5. 8

      To level to rise in one part of a body of water, especially a shallow one, because of a…

      To level to rise in one part of a body of water, especially a shallow one, because of a storm surge caused by persistent wind.

      • The level set up at the south end of the lake after a day of north winds.
   6. 9

      To provide the money or other support that someone needs for an important task or…

      To provide the money or other support that someone needs for an important task or activity.

      • Winning the lottery has set them up for life.
      • A good breakfast really sets you up for the day.
      • If you ever need anything, come back here, and I'll set you up!
   7. 10

      To establish someone in a business or position.

      • After he left college, his father set him up in the family business.
      • She set herself up as an interior designer.
   8. 11

      To trick or lure (someone) in order to entrap them.

      • They claimed that they weren't selling drugs, but that they'd been set up by the police.
   9. 12

      To make (someone) proud or conceited (often in passive).

      • M. Robespierre looked at me sideways and smiled and said to Madame, ‘You're a young lady after my own heart.’ This set her up for the day.
   10. 13

       To matchmake

       To matchmake; to arrange a date between two people.

   11. 14

       To create a goalscoring opportunity (for).

       • Just past the hour Agbonlahor set up the second, crossing for Bent to net.
       • On 71.05, Portu brilliantly set up Yangel Herrera, only for Marc-André ter Stegen to make a sensational save.
   12. 15

       To begin business or a scheme of life.

       • to set up in trade; to set up for oneself
   13. 16

       To profess openly

       To profess openly; to make pretensions.

       • 1744 (first printed) Jonathan Swift, On the Testimony of Conscience those men who set up for morality without regard to religion, are generally virtuous but in part
   14. 17

       To found

       To found; to start (a business, scheme)

       • With the help of his wife Bilquis, he set up a maternal health clinic and a centre for abandoned children.
   15. 18

       To deceive an opponent and capitalize on their reactions with a certain technique or…

       To deceive an opponent and capitalize on their reactions with a certain technique or maneuver.

   16. 19

       To cause to take flight

       To cause to take flight; to flush into the air.

       • Edmund had enjoyed a good gallop over the downs, setting up the sandpipers[.]
   17. 20

       Synonym of compose (To arrange (types) in a composing stick for printing

       Synonym of compose (To arrange (types) in a composing stick for printing; to typeset)

   18. 21

       In a position to function

       In a position to function; ready.

       • Now that I'm set up, this will take moments!

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