set in motion

Idioms  

1. Start something moving, give impetus to something, as in A press conference set the new project in motion. It is also put as set the wheels in motion, as in Let's set the wheels in motion for the new library wing. This idiom dates from about 1800. It was preceded by put in motion, which dates from the mid-1600s.

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

set in motion

She cautioned that "if tensions were to arise on that front, for example in the event of a change in interest rates or market sentiment, contagion effects could be set in motion".

From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026

Even so, the activist investor who has mounted repeated proxy fights at Cracker Barrel, Biglari, set in motion a new one to remove Masino and another board member, Gilbert Dávila.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026

But there is less optimism over how much this will feed through to people's finances, with fears long-lasting damage has already been set in motion.

From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2026

The researchers found that the crystals, made from an iron-containing compound called heme, are set in motion by the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 19, 2026

Although his reign may have begun idealistically, Cahokia quickly became an autocracy; in an Ozymandiac extension of his ego, the supreme leader set in motion the construction projects.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Related Words

• commence
• create
• do
• establish
• found
• go ahead
• go into
• inaugurate
• initiate
• introduce
• launch
• lead
• make
• open
• prepare
• produce
• set up
• start
• undertake