set

The set is the basic object of set theory, which can be considered the underlying foundation of mathematics. Not much can be said about sets, other than that they may or may not contain elements, and that sets can be forms using certain set theoretic operations such as union and intersection.

One highlight of set theory is dealing with the celebrated Russell's Paradox.

A Finite or Infinite collection of objects in which neither order nor multiplicity has significance.

Set is a simple but interesting card game played with a deck of 81 cards. Each card has a group of symbols which represents one possible choice from the following set of options:

• Number: one, two, or three symbols
• Color: red, green, or purple
• Shape: ovals, diamonds, or squiggles
• Pattern: open, half-shaded, or solid

All 81 combinations are represented once each.

A set is a group of three cards which are either all the same or all different for each variable.

This game is among the best ways to blow 15 bucks. This game can be played anywhere with enough flat space to lay out the cards and with any number of participants - even alone.

Since the rules are so simple, the game crosses cultural and linguistic barriers; I played Set many a time in Japan with host families and students at my school. I can't explain the simple rule "If two are, and one isn't, then it's not a set" in Japanese, but I had the kids playing Set like a pro within 10 minutes.

It's not a CCG. Set can be played equally by 7-year-olds and 50-year-olds. Age is no advantage. Experience is only a minor advantage; I usually win the first two or three games, after that, things start evening out.

Set would make a lousy computer game; the computer could identify every set in a layout within microseconds. It would make a good (and simple!) network game, though, and probably could be implemented easily in Java by someone who knew what they were doing.

A collection of elements which can be proven to be completed by the axioms of set theory and the theorems that can be proven from them.

The collection of every object which meets a certain condition or predicate is not a set, it is a class. If you don't define things this way, you let youself in for A blather of paradoxes when infinite sets come into play. However, many classes are represented by sets. Indeed, most of set theory is dedicated to determining which (infinite) classes are represented by (infinite) sets.

Modern set theory contains no concept of an "individual element". In other words, the only things that can be elements of sets are other sets. This is quite a far cry from the set theory taught in first grade, built around collections of real objects!

The essential property of a set is elementhood. That is, a set (call it S) is described by saying something like: "This is in S. Also, this other thing is in S. Also everything in this other set is in S..."

The assertion that a certain set a is an element of another set b is symbolized

a ∈ b

or, for browsers that can't handle HTML character entities for mathematical symbols,

a e b

The definition of a set allows for no repetition of elements. A set is either a member of another set, or it is not.

Elementhood can be used to build more complex statements about sets:

a = b

"a equals b"

if every element of a is an element of b, and vice versa.

a <= b

a ⊆ b

"a is a subset of b"

if every element of a is an element of b.

a < b

a ⊂ b

"a is a proper subset of b"

if every element of a is an element of b, and a != b.

a U b

a ∪ b

"a union b"

is the set of all sets that are in a, b, or both.

a * b

a ∩ b

"a intersection b"

is the set of all sets that are in both a and b.

a^b

is the set of all mappings from a subset of a to a subset of b.

Set is a unique card game based on the mathematical concept of the set. You have a deck of normal size playing cards that has 81 cards in it. All of the cards are different. The idea is to get the most sets before there are no more sets. It is a very interesting game and has produced more than a few setaholics.

Here is a list of the rules:

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Rules

The object of the game is to identify a 'Set' of three cards from 12 cards laid out on the table. Each card has a variation of the following four features:

(A) COLOR:

Each card is red, green, or purple.

(B) SYMBOL:

Each card contains ovals, squiggles, or diamonds.

(C) NUMBER:

Each card has one, two, or three symbols.

(D) SHADING:

Each card is solid, open, or striped.

A 'Set' consists of three cards in which each feature is EITHER the same on each card OR is different on each card. That is to say, any feature in the 'Set' of three cards is either common to all three cards or is different on each card.

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The Magic Rule

If two are... and one is not, then it is not a 'Set'.

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The Play

The dealer shuffles the cards and lays twelve cards (in a rectangle) face up on the table so that they can be seen by all players. The players remove a 'Set' of three cards as they are seen. Each 'Set' is checked by the other players. If correct, the 'Set' is kept by the player and the dealer replaces the three cards with three from the deck. Players do not take turns but pick up 'Sets' as soon as they see them. A player must call 'Set' before picking up the cards. After a player has called 'Set', no other player can pick up cards until the first player is finished. If a player calls 'Set' and does not have one, the player loses one point. The three cards are returned to the table.

If all players agree that there is no 'Set' in the twelve cards showing, three more cards (making a total of fifteen) are laid face up. These cards are not replaced when the next 'Set' is picked up, reducing the number to twelve again. If solitaire is being played, the player loses at this point.

The play continues until the deck is depleted. At the end of the play there may be six or nine cards which do not form a 'Set'.

The number of 'Sets' held by each player are then counted, one point is given for each and added to their score. The deal then passes to the person on the dealer's left and the play resumes with the deck being reshuffled.

When all players have dealt, the game ends; the highest score wins.

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NOTE: If you are playing with color blind people, you will need to mark either the red or the green cards to make it easier for them to play the game.

SET (Secure Electronic Transaction, from SET Secure Electronic Transaction LLC) is also one method of sending credit card information over the Internet securely, using strong encryption.

I can only comment on Finnish side here: Luottokunta (the credit card corporation responsible for VISA and Mastercard in Finland) specifically told people not to send credit card information to the shop over the Internet - instead, they recommended snail mail, phone or fax, which was pretty strange because faxes and telephone lines in general are less secure than PGP or even the 40-bit SSL that was used at that time.

They chose SET for this, but it never caught on - I heard it was pain to implement at server, so only few shops in the end decided to use SET. Furthermore, the SET client was only available for Windows. Currently, Luottokunta approves the use of SSL, too.

In theatre, the created location in which the play takes place. This can be anything from a bare stage to a plumbed and wired functional house to an existing location used as the setting for the play. The set is envisioned and created by the set designer in collaboration with the director and realized by the technical director and his crew of carpenters, welders and painters.

The legends surrounding Set are many, and even his description varies from the form of a serpent, an aardvark-headed man or even a greyhound. What he symbolizes is also a matter of some dispute, as some believe it is chaos, others claim outright evil, while many Egyptologists cling to the idea that he is the deity of iron. In many myths, Set is portrayed as the brother of Osiris, which in turn leads to the bizarre account of Set’s murder of his brother. Stories surrounding this fratricide range from the [intense[ to the mild, going so far as to speak of dismemberment and rape of the corpse of Osiris. Within the Book of the Dead, Set is said to be “the great northern sky”, responsible for cloudy skies and stormy weather. In the Book, is said to protect the sun god Re on his nightly voyage through the underworld. The cult of Set finds significance in the Desert Oryx, crocodile, boar, and hippopotamus, in that they are all destroyers of field and boat.

Set: An Introduction To The Idea Of Geometry In Four Dimensions

Believe it or not, the simple card game of set is actually based on four dimensional geometry. No really. And you thought it was just a waste of time...

For those of you who haven't played it, set is played with 81 cards, as described by /dev/joe above. Now 81 = 3⁴ = 3x3x3x3, which is no coincidence - but you'll see why this is later, if you haven't already.

To play, you lay 12 cards out on the table, and the players have to find a set, which is a collection of three cards from the 12, where for each category (colour, number, shape or pattern), either they are all the same (for example, all three are red) or they are all different (one is diamonds, one ovals and one squiggles). And to make a set, you have to do this for all categories at once.

So the triplets that aren't sets are the ones where two are red and one is blue, or two are half-shaded and one is solid, or two have one symbol and one has three - you get the idea.

When you find a set, you yell "Set!", show the set to the other players to check that it actually is a set, and then keep those cards. Then the dealer deals three more cards to bring the total back to 12 on the table. If nobody can find a set from the 12 on the table, another 3 cards are dealt out to help, giving 15 to choose from (although even then it's not always possible to find a set - I'll come back to this).

The idea is very simple - the person with the most sets at the end of the game wins.

Now believe it or not, you can think of the cards in Set as points on a four-dimensional grid, and the sets as lines in the grid.

I'll demonstrate with a simplified game.

Suppose you just had two categories: colour and shape. Your cards are either red, blue or green, and they either have ovals, diamonds or squiggles on - you have 9 cards. Now, suppose you draw a graph with shape down one axis, and colour down the other; then you could put each card into its place in on the graph, and so arrange them in a 3x3 grid.

Here's where it gets nice: the sets in the game of Set are just the lines on the grid - the places where you have to get three in a row to win at tic-tac-toe. There are eight possible sets: three lines of same shape different colour, three lines of same colour different shape, and two diagonals which correspond to sets which share neither colour nor shape.

Now we can add in the possibility of different numbers, and so add an extra axis on our graph. We now get a 3x3x3 grid, like a three-dimensional tic-tac-toe board; the sets are still the lines on the grid, although now there are a lot more possibilities.

Lastly, we add a pattern axis into a hypothetical fourth dimension, making a 3x3x3x3 grid. Now here's where it starts to get difficult to visualize, but that doesn't really matter, because everything works basically the same as the three-dimensional case.

I'll expand on that idea. Suppose you have just one category; let's say shape. Your cards are all red, and have one symbol and are solid shaded, but one's oval, one's squiggly and one's a diamond. Then you'd have three cards arranged in a line. To add colour, you do the following: make two copies of the line of cards, one in blue and one in green. Then lay both copies alongside the first one, and voila! A 3x3 grid with both categories.

Likewise, to add shading, you make two copies of the 3x3 grid, one half-shaded and one unfilled, and lay them next to the first one to make a 3x3x3 grid.

So when you get to a 3x3x3x3 grid, it's not really too hard to think of - you just make two copies of the 3x3x3 grid, with different numbers of symbols on each card, and lay them alongside the first one. You can think of this happening in three dimensions without too much difficulty, although it's not so easy to work with.

You've probably heard of Einstein's theories that the world is four dimensional and time is the fourth dimension, but don't worry about that for now - just think of the fourth dimension as being the same as the first three; as well as up/down, left/right, forwards/backward, you get another direction to go to.

This is how mathematicians and physicists deal with spaces that have more than three dimensions - start small, and work up.

And what's more, even with four dimensions, the sets are still the lines where you would win at tic-tac-toe (although you wouldn't play tic-tac-toe on a 3d or 4d grid, because the first player would always win - but that's another story). It's not entirely obvious why this is, but if you think about it you should be able to convince yourself.

One interesting fact that comes out of all this is that it's possible to have 16 cards on the table without there being a set there - just take any 2x2x2x2 block from the 3x3x3x3 grid, and it can't have any full lines. On the other hand, if there are 17 or more cards on the table, then there has to be a set in there somewhere. I don't think I've ever seen more than 15 cards dealt, but in theory it could happen.

So far, my geometric ideas about the game of set haven't helped me win (:-(), but I'm gonna keep trying - this game is just way to addictive.

Set (or Seth) was the Egyptian god of evil, patron of mayhem, war and natural disasters. He loved the sound of tearing flesh; the wolf and the hyena were his creatures. Though brother to Orisis, most divine and beautiful of the gods, Set himself displayed an alien ugliness. His skin was an unhealthy white, in stark contrast to the warm honey and ebony tones of his brethren, and his hair was a startling red, the color of evil.

Jealous of his brothers rule (with his sorceress queen,and sister as was the custom of the pharaoh's, Isis at his side) Set tricked Orisis into a deadly trap, by way of an ornate coffin. In time Isis restored her husband to life, and their son Horus was raised in preparation to challenge his uncle.

Through ceaseless and uncertain battles, the forces of Set and Horus waged war for the right of soverignty over Egypt. The throne was eventually handed to Horus by way of a trial, judged by Thoth-lord of the moon, said to have lasted eighty years.

Here differences arise, Some tales claim that Set was banished to the desert, while others that he was forever forced into the role of the servant - guarding the shining ship of Ra.

"A set" is a term used to describe a poker hand more commonly called three-of-a-kind or trips, usually heard while playing the game Texas Hold-Em.

The most common scenerio when this occurs is when a player has starting (or hole) cards that are of the same rank (a pair) and then the one of the "community cards" (or board) matches the paired hole cards.

 

In the poker game Texas Hold 'Em (and probably other games with community cards,) a set is a three of a kind hand composed of one community card and a pocket pair, that is, two pocket cards of the same rank. It differs from trips, two community cards and one hole card.  It is an extremely strong hand in almost any situation.

Sets and trips are, of course, scored in exactly the same way: as three of a kind. However, sets are far more valuable!

So, let's say, hypothetically, you get dealt 7♠7♣, limp into the flop, and find, to your surprise and delight, that it is as follows:

3♥7♦Q♣

You are now in proud possession of a set. Lucky you! With your three sevens, you almost certainly have the best hand right now; only pocket queens beat you, and they are very rare. (In general, you don't have to worry about having a set beaten by a higher set.) Clearly, you are in a great position!

A set is beaten only by a straight, a flush, a full house, a better three of-a kind, or quads. Since sets can show up on any board, all of these are rare. There must be three or more of the same suit for a flush to show up, straights are rare unless the cards are clustered together, and the board must pair (that is, more than one of the same rank of card must show up on the board) for a full house or four of a kind to appear. Furthermore, a pair isn't necessarily a bad thing; while it makes a big full house or quads more likely, it also gives you a full house (or quads,) letting you beat straights and flushes. And those hands are unlikely anyway, even if the board pairs; the more likely case is that someone will get trips (or a flush, or a straight) and throw all of their money at you.

On this particular flop, all of these are unlikely. Unless the turn or river brings a pair, full houses and quads can't show up. The flop has cards of all different suits, so a flush is unlikely, as the turn and the river would both have to have the same suit to make one possible. Someone with 54 has an inside straight draw, but other than that every flush or likely straight has to come in through the back door, and they probably won't. Keep betting, and don't stop!

Even if this flop was more clustered or had two of the same suit on it, you still have the best hand, and there is a good enough chance that you will continue having the best hand at the end of the day to make betting worthwhile. A flush or open-ended straight draw doesn't come in that often, so your set will hold up a majority of the time. So keep betting anyway!

And I haven't even mentioned the best part yet. This is a completely ordinary flop! Anyone with a queen or decent pocket pair is probably feeling quite happy right now, not knowing that they are drawing to two outs; furthermore, if you bet furiously (and you should!) they won't immediately suspect a set, and will gladly call or even raise your bets.

Trips are a nice hand too, of course. Sure, they can be beaten by someone with the same three of a kind and a better kicker, but they are still three of a kind, and they still beat a bunch of different hands. The problem with trips is that with two same-rank cards sitting out on the table for everyone to see, you can be sure that everyone is thinking about trips, not just you.

A set is a monster hand. Trips are not.

Set (set), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Set; p. pr. & vb. n. Setting.] [OE. setten, AS. setton; akin to OS. settian, OFries. setta, D. zetten, OHG. sezzen, G. setzen, Icel. setja, Sw. sätta, Dan. s&?;tte, Goth. satjan; causative from the root of E. sit. √154. See Sit, and cf. Seize.]

1.

To cause to sit; to make to assume a specified position or attitude; to give site or place to; to place; to put; to fix; as, to set a house on a stone foundation; to set a book on a shelf; to set a dish on a table; to set a chest or trunk on its bottom or on end.

I do set my bow in the cloud.
Gen. ix. 13.

2.

Hence, to attach or affix (something) to something else, or in or upon a certain place.

Set your affection on things above.
Col. iii. 2.

The Lord set a mark upon Cain.
Gen. iv. 15.

3.

To make to assume specified place, condition, or occupation; to put in a certain condition or state (described by the accompanying words); to cause to be.

The Lord thy God will set thee on high.
Deut. xxviii. 1.

I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother.
Matt. x. 35.

Every incident sets him thinking.
Coleridge.

4.

To fix firmly; to make fast, permanent, or stable; to render motionless; to give an unchanging place, form, or condition to. Specifically: --

(a)

To cause to stop or stick; to obstruct; to fasten to a spot; hence, to occasion difficulty to; to embarrass; as, to set a coach in the mud.

They show how hard they are set in this particular.
Addison.

(b)

To fix beforehand; to determine; hence, to make unyielding or obstinate; to render stiff, unpliant, or rigid; as, to set one's countenance.

His eyes were set by reason of his age.
1 Kings xiv. 4.

On these three objects his heart was set.
Macaulay.

Make my heart as a millstone, set my face as a flint.
Tennyson.

(c)

To fix in the ground, as a post or a tree; to plant; as, to set pear trees in an orchard.

(d)

To fix, as a precious stone, in a border of metal; to place in a setting; hence, to place in or amid something which serves as a setting; as, to set glass in a sash.

And him too rich a jewel to be set
In vulgar metal for a vulgar use.
Dryden.

(e)

To render stiff or solid; especially, to convert into curd; to curdle; as, to set milk for cheese.

5.

To put into a desired position or condition; to adjust; to regulate; to adapt. Specifically: --

(a)

To put in order in a particular manner; to prepare; as, to set (that is, to hone) a razor; to set a saw.

Tables for to sette, and beddes make.
Chaucer.

(b)

To extend and bring into position; to spread; as, to set the sails of a ship.

(c)

To give a pitch to, as a tune; to start by fixing the keynote; as, to set a psalm. Fielding.

(d)

To reduce from a dislocated or fractured state; to replace; as, to set a broken bone.

(e)

To make to agree with some standard; as, to set a watch or a clock.

(f) (Masonry)

To lower into place and fix solidly, as the blocks of cut stone in a structure.

6.

To stake at play; to wager; to risk.

I have set my life upon a cast,
And I will stand the hazard of the die.
Shak.

7.

To fit with music; to adapt, as words to notes; to prepare for singing.

Set thy own songs, and sing them to thy lute.
Dryden.

8.

To determine; to appoint; to assign; to fix; as, to set a time for a meeting; to set a price on a horse.

9.

To adorn with something infixed or affixed; to stud; to variegate with objects placed here and there.

High on their heads, with jewels richly set,
Each lady wore a radiant coronet.
Dryden.

Pastoral dales thin set with modern farms.
Wordsworth.

10.

To value; to rate; -- with at.

Be you contented, wearing now the garland,
To have a son set your decrees at naught.
Shak.

I do not set my life at a pin's fee.
Shak.

11.

To point out the seat or position of, as birds, or other game; -- said of hunting dogs.

12.

To establish as a rule; to furnish; to prescribe; to assign; as, to set an example; to set lessons to be learned.

13.

To suit; to become; as, it sets him ill. [Scot.]

14. (Print.)

To compose; to arrange in words, lines, etc.; as, to set type; to set a page.

To set abroach. See Abroach. [Obs.] Shak. --
To set against, to oppose; to set in comparison with, or to oppose to, as an equivalent in exchange; as, to set one thing against another. --
To set agoing, to cause to move. --
To set apart, to separate to a particular use; to separate from the rest; to reserve. --
To set a saw, to bend each tooth a little, every alternate one being bent to one side, and the intermediate ones to the other side, so that the opening made by the saw may be a little wider than the thickness of the back, to prevent the saw from sticking. --
To set aside.
(a) To leave out of account; to pass by; to omit; to neglect; to reject; to annul.

Setting aside all other considerations, I will endeavor to know the truth, and yield to that.
Tillotson.

(b) To set apart; to reserve; as, to set aside part of one's income.
(c) (Law) See under Aside. --
To set at defiance, to defy. --
To set at ease, to quiet; to tranquilize; as, to set the heart at ease. --
To set at naught, to undervalue; to contemn; to despise. "Ye have set at naught all my counsel." Prov. i. 25. --
To set a trap, snare, or gin, to put it in a proper condition or position to catch prey; hence, to lay a plan to deceive and draw another into one's power. --
To set at work, or To set to work.
(a) To cause to enter on work or action, or to direct how tu enter on work.
(b) To apply one's self; -- used reflexively. --
To set before.
(a) To bring out to view before; to exhibit.
(b) To propose for choice to; to offer to. --
To set by.
(a) To set apart or on one side; to reject.
(b) To attach the value of (anything) to. "I set not a straw by thy dreamings." Chaucer. --
To set by the compass, to observe and note the bearing or situation of by the compass. --
To set case, to suppose; to assume. Cf. Put case, under Put, v. t. [Obs.] Chaucer. --
To set down.
(a) To enter in writing; to register.

Some rules were to be set down for the government of the army.
Clarendon.

(b) To fix; to establish; to ordain.

This law we may name eternal, being that order which God . . . hath set down with himself, for himself to do all things by.
Hooker.

(c) To humiliate. --
To set eyes on, to see; to behold; to fasten the eyes on. --
To set fire to, or To set on fire, to communicate fire to; fig., to inflame; to enkindle the passions of; to irritate. --
To set flying (Naut.), to hook to halyards, sheets, etc., instead of extending with rings or the like on a stay; -- said of a sail. --
To set forth.
(a) To manifest; to offer or present to view; to exhibt; to display.
(b) To publish; to promulgate; to make appear. Waller.

(c) To send out; to prepare and send. [Obs.]

The Venetian admiral had a fleet of sixty galleys, set forth by the Venetians.
Knolles.

--
To set forward.
(a) To cause to advance.
(b) To promote. --
To set free, to release from confinement, imprisonment, or bondage; to liberate; to emancipate. --
To set in, to put in the way; to begin; to give a start to. [Obs.]

If you please to assist and set me in, I will recollect myself.
Collier.

--
To set in order, to adjust or arrange; to reduce to method. "The rest will I set in order when I come." 1 Cor. xi. 34. --
To set milk.
(a) To expose it in open dishes in order that the cream may rise to the surface.
(b) To cause it to become curdled as by the action of rennet. See 4 (e). --
To set much, or little, by, to care much, or little, for. --
To set of, to value; to set by. [Obs.] "I set not an haw of his proverbs." Chaucer. --
To set off.
(a) To separate from a whole; to assign to a particular purpose; to portion off; as, to set off a portion of an estate.
(b) To adorn; to decorate; to embellish.

They . . . set off the worst faces with the best airs.
Addison.

(c) To give a flattering description of. - - To set off against, to place against as an equivalent; as, to set off one man's services against another's. --
To set on or upon.
(a) To incite; to instigate. "Thou, traitor, hast set on thy wife to this." Shak.

(b) To employ, as in a task. " Set on thy wife to observe." Shak.

(c) To fix upon; to attach strongly to; as, to set one's heart or affections on some object. See definition 2, above. --
To set one's cap for. See under Cap, n. --
To set one's self against, to place one's self in a state of enmity or opposition to. --
To set one's teeth, to press them together tightly. --
To set on foot, to set going; to put in motion; to start. --
To set out.
(a) To assign; to allot; to mark off; to limit; as, to set out the share of each proprietor or heir of an estate; to set out the widow's thirds.
(b) To publish, as a proclamation. [Obs.]

(c) To adorn; to embellish.

An ugly woman, in rich habit set out with jewels, nothing can become.
Dryden.

(d) To raise, equip, and send forth; to furnish. [R.]

The Venetians pretend they could set out, in case of great necessity, thirty men-of-war.
Addison.

(e) To show; to display; to recommend; to set off.

I could set out that best side of Luther.
Atterbury.

(f) To show; to prove. [R.] "Those very reasons set out how heinous his sin was." Atterbury.

(g) (Law) To recite; to state at large. --
To set over.
(a) To appoint or constitute as supervisor, inspector, ruler, or commander.
(b) To assign; to transfer; to convey. --
To set right, to correct; to put in order. --
To set sail. (Naut.) See under Sail, n. --
To set store by, to consider valuable. --
To set the fashion, to determine what shall be the fashion; to establish the mode. --
To set the teeth on edge, to affect the teeth with a disagreeable sensation, as when acids are brought in contact with them. --
To set the watch (Naut.), to place the starboard or port watch on duty. --
To set to, to attach to; to affix to. "He . . . hath set to his seal that God is true." John iii. 33. --
To set up. (a) To erect; to raise; to elevate; as, to set up a building, or a machine; to set up a post, a wall, a pillar.
(b) Hence, to exalt; to put in power. "I will . . . set up the throne of David over Israel." 2 Sam. iii. 10.

(c) To begin, as a new institution; to institute; to establish; to found; as, to set up a manufactory; to set up a school.
(d) To enable to commence a new business; as, to set up a son in trade.
(e) To place in view; as, to set up a mark.
(f) To raise; to utter loudly; as, to set up the voice.

I'll set up such a note as she shall hear.
Dryden.

(g) To advance; to propose as truth or for reception; as, to set up a new opinion or doctrine. T. Burnet.

(h) To raise from depression, or to a sufficient fortune; as, this good fortune quite set him up.
(i) To intoxicate. [Slang]

(j) (Print.) To put in type; as, to set up copy; to arrange in words, lines, etc., ready for printing; as, to set up type. --
To set up the rigging (Naut.), to make it taut by means of tackles. R. H. Dana, Jr.

Syn. -- See Put.

 

© Webster 1913

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Set (set), v. i.

1.

To pass below the horizon; to go down; to decline; to sink out of sight; to come to an end.

Ere the weary sun set in the west.
Shak.

Thus this century sets with little mirth, and the next is likely to arise with more mourning.
Fuller.

2.

To fit music to words. [Obs.] Shak.

3.

To place plants or shoots in the ground; to plant. "To sow dry, and set wet." Old Proverb.

4.

To be fixed for growth; to strike root; to begin to germinate or form; as, cuttings set well; the fruit has set well (i. e., not blasted in the blossom).

5.

To become fixed or rigid; to be fastened.

A gathering and serring of the spirits together to resist, maketh the teeth to set hard one against another.
Bacon.

6.

To congeal; to concrete; to solidify.

That fluid substance in a few minutes begins to set.
Boyle.

7.

To have a certain direction in motion; to flow; to move on; to tend; as, the current sets to the north; the tide sets to the windward.

8.

To begin to move; to go out or forth; to start; -- now followed by out.

The king is set from London.
Shak.

9.

To indicate the position of game; -- said of a dog; as, the dog sets well; also, to hunt game by the aid of a setter.

10.

To apply one's self; to undertake earnestly; -- now followed by out.

If he sets industriously and sincerely to perform the commands of Christ, he can have no ground of doubting but it shall prove successful to him.
Hammond.

11.

To fit or suit one; to sit; as, the coat sets well. [Colloquially used, but improperly, for sit.]

⇒ The use of the verb set for sit in such expressions as, the hen is setting on thirteen eggs; a setting hen, etc., although colloquially common, and sometimes tolerated in serious writing, is not to be approved.

To set about, to commence; to begin. --
To set forward, to move or march; to begin to march; to advance. --
To set forth, to begin a journey. --
To set in.
(a) To begin; to enter upon a particular state; as, winter set in early.
(b) To settle one's self; to become established. "When the weather was set in to be very bad." Addison.

(c) To flow toward the shore; -- said of the tide. --
To set off.

(a) To enter upon a journey; to start.
(b) (Typog.) To deface or soil the next sheet; -- said of the ink on a freshly printed sheet, when another sheet comes in contact with it before it has had time to dry. --
To set on or upon.
(a) To begin, as a journey or enterprise; to set about.

He that would seriously set upon the search of truth.
Locke.

(b) To assault; to make an attack. Bacon.

Cassio hath here been set on in the dark.
Shak.

--
To set out, to begin a journey or course; as, to set out for London, or from London; to set out in business;to set out in life or the world. --
To set to, to apply one's self to. --
To set up.
(a) To begin business or a scheme of life; as, to set up in trade; to set up for one's self.
(b) To profess openly; to make pretensions.

Those men who set up for mortality without regard to religion, are generally but virtuous in part.
Swift.

 

© Webster 1913

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Set (?), a.

1.

Fixed in position; immovable; rigid; as, a set line; a set countenance.

2.

Firm; unchanging; obstinate; as, set opinions or prejudices.

3.

Regular; uniform; formal; as, a set discourse; a set battle. "The set phrase of peace." Shak.

4.

Established; prescribed; as, set forms of prayer.

5.

Adjusted; arranged; formed; adapted.

Set hammer.
(a) A hammer the head of which is not tightly fastened upon the handle, but may be reversed. Knight.

(b) A hammer with a concave face which forms a die for shaping anything, as the end of a bolt, rivet, etc. --
Set line, a line to which a number of baited hooks are attached, and which, supported by floats and properly secured, may be left unguarded during the absence of the fisherman. --
Set nut, a jam nut or lock nut. See under Nut. --
Set screw (Mach.), a screw, sometimes cupped or printed at one end, and screwed through one part, as of a machine, tightly upon another part, to prevent the one from slipping upon the other. --
Set speech, a speech carefully prepared before it is delivered in public; a formal or methodical speech.

 

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Set, n.

1.

The act of setting, as of the sun or other heavenly body; descent; hence, the close; termination. "Locking at the set of day." Tennyson.

The weary sun hath made a golden set.
Shak.

2.

That which is set, placed, or fixed. Specifically: --

(a)

A young plant for growth; as, a set of white thorn.

(b)

That which is staked; a wager; a venture; a stake; hence, a game at venture. [Obs. or R.]

We will in France, by God's grace, play a set
Shall strike his father's crown into the hazard.
Shak.

That was but civil war, an equal set.
Dryden.

(c) (Mech.)

Permanent change of figure in consequence of excessive strain, as from compression, tension, bending, twisting, etc.; as, the set of a spring.

(d)

A kind of punch used for bending, indenting, or giving shape to, metal; as, a saw set.

(e) (Pile Driving)

A piece placed temporarily upon the head of a pile when the latter cannot be reached by the weight, or hammer, except by means of such an intervening piece. [Often incorrectly written sett.]

(f) (Carp.)

A short steel spike used for driving the head of a nail below the surface.

3. [Perhaps due to confusion with sect, sept.]

A number of things of the same kind, ordinarily used or classed together; a collection of articles which naturally complement each other, and usually go together; an assortment; a suit; as, a set of chairs, of china, of surgical or mathematical instruments, of books, etc. [In this sense, sometimes incorrectly written sett.]

4.

A number of persons associated by custom, office, common opinion, quality, or the like; a division; a group; a clique. "Others of our set." Tennyson.

This falls into different divisions, or sets, of nations connected under particular religions.
R. P. Ward.

5.

Direction or course; as, the set of the wind, or of a current.

6.

In dancing, the number of persons necessary to execute a quadrille; also, the series of figures or movements executed.

7.

The deflection of a tooth, or of the teeth, of a saw, which causes the the saw to cut a kerf, or make an opening, wider than the blade.

8.

(a)

A young oyster when first attached.

(b)

Collectively, the crop of young oysters in any locality.

9. (Tennis)

A series of as many games as may be necessary to enable one side to win six. If at the end of the tenth game the score is a tie, the set is usually called a deuce set, and decided by an application of the rules for playing off deuce in a game. See Deuce.

10. (Type Founding)

That dimension of the body of a type called by printers the width.

Dead set.
(a) The act of a setter dog when it discovers the game, and remains intently fixed in pointing it out.
(b) A fixed or stationary condition arising from obstacle or hindrance; a deadlock; as, to be at a dead set.
(c) A concerted scheme to defraud by gaming; a determined onset. --
To make a dead set, to make a determined onset, literally or figuratively.

Syn. -- Collection; series; group. See Pair.

 

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Set, n.

1. (Textiles)

Any of various standards of measurement of the fineness of cloth; specif., the number of reeds in one inch and the number of threads in each reed. The exact meaning varies according to the location where it is used. Sometimes written sett.

2.

A stone, commonly of granite, shaped like a short brick and usually somewhat larger than one, used for street paving. Commonly written sett.

3.

Camber of a curved roofing tile.

4.

The manner, state, or quality of setting or fitting; fit; as, the set of a coat. [Colloq.]

 

© Webster 1913