settle down
Britishverb
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(also tr) to make or become quiet and orderly
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(often foll by to) to apply oneself diligently
please settle down to work
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to adopt an orderly and routine way of life, take up a permanent post, etc, esp after marriage
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Begin living a stable, orderly life; also, marry. For example, After traveling all over the world for years, he decided to settle down in his home town , or Her parents wished she would settle down and raise a family . [Early 1600s]
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Become calm, less nervous, or less restless, as in Come on, children, it's time to settle down . [Mid-1800s]
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Apply oneself seriously, as in If you don't settle down to your homework, you'll never get it done . [First half of 1800s]
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.
My parents’ choice to settle down in Los Angeles had to do with climate.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026
“They may keep their buying in check until things settle down again.”
From Barron's • Mar. 4, 2026
Front-month gold futures settle down 0.6% to $5,176.50/oz.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026
A decision which divides many, Rosie Scott, 34, moved back home to Kent from Perth, western Australia a year ago to "settle down" with her boyfriend.
From BBC • Dec. 27, 2025
His bed was empty and his boots gone, so the moths, fluttering with agitation, had no choice but to settle down and wait.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
