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Synonyms

set about

British  

verb

  1. to start or begin

  2. to attack physically or verbally

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
set about Idioms  

  1. Begin, start, as in How do we set about solving this puzzle? [c. 1600]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Her grandad Craig Dixon set about building it and it has been so popular he has had to build a bigger one.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

When he took over as sporting director last winter, Parsons quickly set about overhauling the roster, leaving Angel City with one of the youngest teams in the NWSL, averaging 25 years of age, this season.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026

"This team can perform better," he said on his presentation, and immediately set about proving it.

From Barron's • Jan. 30, 2026

Those experiences helped pave the way for Coinbase, which set about to solve a problem that confounded those eager to invest in cryptocurrencies: There was no place for people to store their digital assets.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

The next day, Sissy set about getting the two books.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith

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.