To end a disagreement or problem by reaching an agreement or decision. It can also mean to move to a new place and live there permanently, or to become still and calm.
From Old English 'setlan' meaning 'to cause to sit, place, fix', related to 'set'. Over time it picked up legal, financial, and emotional senses of making things stable.
Whether you 'settle a debt', 'settle down', or 'settle in a new country', you’re doing the same basic thing: making something sit still instead of moving. The word tracks a journey from physical sitting to emotional and social stability.
'Settle' appears in phrases like 'settle down' that have been used to pressure women into domestic roles and to frame their ambitions as secondary to family. It also appears in 'settling' in relationships, sometimes judging women's choices more harshly than men's.
Use 'settle' neutrally and be cautious with phrases that imply one 'should' settle into a gendered life path; describe choices without moralizing based on gender.
["resolve","establish","stabilize","come to rest"]
In discussions of settlement and domestic life, include women's agency in choosing or rejecting certain arrangements, rather than treating them as passive participants.
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