set the table
IdiomsExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It could help set the table for Carney to say the "private sector says they want a deal. What can we do?" said Mr Sands.
From BBC ● Nov. 25, 2025
Hortiz set the table for his successful debut season as an NFL general manager by acing his first draft and hopes to follow up with an equally impressive encore this week.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2025
Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, Hegseth’s hand-holder for the four-hour interrogation, set the table for him with his opening question.
From Slate ● Jan. 14, 2025
“Dune: Prophecy,” a prequel based on Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson’s “Great Schools of Dune” trilogy, has about six hours to set the table and whet our appetite.
From Salon ● Nov. 17, 2024
While this cooked Baucis set the table with her trembling old hands.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
