set back | Idiomator

Meaning: (transitive)Todelayorobstruct.Coordinate term:hold backI expect it willsetusbackby a day or so, but I think a side trip will be worthwhile.Having the mindset that you "can't" reach your goals is only going tosetyouback.1897December (indicated as1898),Winston Churchill, chapter IV, inThe Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.:The Macmillan Company; London:Macmillan & Co., Ltd.,→OCLC,page51:“Well,” I answered, at first with uncertainty, then with inspiration, “he would do splendidly to lead your cotillon, if you think of having one.” ¶ “So you do not dance, Mr. Crocker?” ¶ I was somewhatset backby her perspicuity.; (transitive)Toremovefrom or allowdistance.Setitbackfrom the road by twenty or thirty feet.1980,AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd, page 273, aboutMallwyd:Roads fromMachynlleth,DolgellauandWelshpoolmeet atMallwyd, but this tiny village isset backfrom passing traffic and retains its atmosphere of charm and tranquillity.; (transitive)Toinstallor position behind a boundary or surface, or in arecess.Coordinate term:insetThe statue wasset backin a niche.; (transitive,idiomatic)Tocostmoney.How much do you suppose that fancy dresssetherback?; Toreverse, go backwards.Coordinate terms:back out,back up,go back1939December, John D. Hewitt, “Some Notable British Main Lines: II. Salisbury and Exeter, S.R.”, inRailway Magazine, page412:Before the platforms were extended up to the actual junction, branch trains had toset backinto a bay.

Examples:

EN: - Everybody set back there? - Yeah.
ES: ¿Todos listos?
EN: Defeat that set back for 20 years the cause of reform in the U.S forever cancelled political chances for Charles Foster Kane.
ES: Derrota que retrasó por 20 años la causa de la reforma en los EE.UU y que canceló para siempre las aspiraciones políticas de Charles Kane.
EN: I've set back the sacred cause of reform, is that it?
ES: Retrasé la sagrada causa de la reforma, ¿es eso?
EN: I postponed the Amanda case for you... and set back the Duffy hearing... and asked for a continuance against the streetcar company.
ES: He aplazado el caso de Amanda por ti, he atrasado la vista de Duffy y he solicitado un aplazamiento contra la empresa de tranvías.
EN: Sentence to set back to 3:00 this morning.
ES: La sentencia se cumplirá a las 3:00.
EN: As soon as we can afford it, we'll get the set back.
ES: En cuanto podamos permitírnoslo, lo recuperaremos.
EN: Unless released for flying duty immediately, recommend that student be set back a class.
ES: Al no ser liberado para volar de inmediato, ...recordamos que el estudiante se retrasó en clase.
EN: Watch him get set back on his heels.
ES: Ahora lo cortará.
EN: Oh, come on, Clavdia. When you don't stand by your convictions, you set back the cause of all women everywhere in the world.
ES: Si una no se atiene a sus convicciones se retrocede en la causa de todas las mujeres del mundo.
EN: Get set back there.
ES: Listos para el lanzamiento.
EN: And the waves set back in a great vacuum,beautiful
ES: Las olas se cruzan de manera impresionante. Magnífico.
EN: All set back there?
ES: ¿Todo listo?
EN: - Is everything all set back here?
ES: - ¿Está todo listo por aquí?
EN: Well I'm rather tall you know and I try to have the seat set back.
ES: Soy bastante alto, y necesito que me alejen el asiento.
EN: You were putting the croquet set back in the box.
ES: Guardando el juego de "croquet" en su caja.

Note: the examples for non latin scripts have a high likelihood of mistakes, we do not own any of this data and it is sourced from Wiktionary, the NLLB database and Opensubtitles. Please help us improve this by contributing correct examples. We will be working to fix this issue over time however it is a bigger issue due to the the difficulties in dealing with non latin scripts and grammatical structures(non-romantic/european languages have lower resources as well ).