setter

American  

[set-er] / ˈsɛt ər /

noun

1. a person or thing that sets.

2. one of any of several breeds of hunting dogs that originally had the habit of crouching when game was scented but that are now trained to stand stiffly and point the muzzle toward the scented game.

3. Volleyball. a player who lofts the ball high for a teammate near the net to spike.

---

setter British  

/ ˈsɛtə /

noun

1. any of various breeds of large gun dog, having silky coats and plumed tails See English setter Gordon setter Irish setter

---

Etymology

Origin of setter

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; set, -er ¹

Example Sentences

“Chemistry,” setter Tommy Spalding said about the Sea Hawks’ triumph.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

Mir became the pace setter after the 28-year-old clocked 1 min 56.874 sec on his Honda machine after 11 laps, to become the fastest rider over two days of testing in Malaysia.

From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026

When he joins the former volleyball powerhouse Karasuno High School, he butts heads with his former rival, setter Tobio Kageyama.

From Salon • Dec. 26, 2025

“The budget is unlikely to affect monetary policy much either way,” said Michael Saunders, a senior economic advisor at Oxford Economics and a former BOE rate setter, in a note.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 27, 2025

When Lilya Litvyak was a teenager learning to fly, she’d admired Marina Raskova so much that she’d carried a picture of the Soviet record setter around in a notebook with her.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein