setback
/ˈsɛtbæk/ noun
Forms setbacks
- noun An obstacle, delay, disadvantage, or blow (an adverse event which slows down, or prevents progress towards a desired outcome). “After some initial setbacks, the expedition went safely on its way.”
- noun (by extension) Any adverse event, defeat, or impediment of progress.
- noun (US) The required distance between a structure and a road.
- noun (architecture) A step-like recession in a wall. “Setbacks were initially used for structural reasons, but now are often mandated by land use codes.”
- noun An offset to the temperature setting of a thermostat to cover a period when more or less heating is required than usual.
- noun (possibly archaic) A backset; a countercurrent; an eddy.
- noun (archaic) A backset; a check; a repulse; a relapse.
Synonyms
Etymology
Deverbal from set back. Compare drawback.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Offset, n., 4.
- noun A backset; a countercurrent; an eddy. [U. S.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “setback”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details