Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Settle \Set"tle\, n. [OE. setel, setil, a seat, AS. setl: akin
   to OHG. sezzal, G. sessel, Goth. sitls, and E. sit.
   [root]154. See {Sit}.]
   1. A seat of any kind. [Obs.] ``Upon the settle of his
      majesty'' --Hampole.

   2. A bench; especially, a bench with a high back.

   3. A place made lower than the rest; a wide step or platform
      lower than some other part.

            And from the bottom upon the ground, even to the
            lower settle, shall be two cubits, and the breadth
            one cubit.                            --Ezek. xliii.
                                                  14.

   {Settle bed}, a bed convertible into a seat. [Eng.]

Settle \Set"tle\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Settled}; p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Settling}.] [OE. setlen, AS. setlan. [root]154. See
   {Settle}, n. In senses 7, 8, and 9 perhaps confused with OE.
   sahtlen to reconcile, AS. sahtlian, fr. saht reconciliation,
   sacon to contend, dispute. Cf. {Sake}.]
   1. To place in a fixed or permanent condition; to make firm,
      steady, or stable; to establish; to fix; esp., to
      establish in life; to fix in business, in a home, or the
      like.

            And he settled his countenance steadfastly upon him,
            until he was ashamed.                 --2 Kings
                                                  viii. 11.
                                                  (Rev. Ver.)

            The father thought the time drew on Of setting in
            the world his only son.               --Dryden.

   2. To establish in the pastoral office; to ordain or install
      as pastor or rector of a church, society, or parish; as,
      to settle a minister. [U. S.]

   3. To cause to be no longer in a disturbed condition; to
      render quiet; to still; to calm; to compose.

            God settled then the huge whale-bearing lake.
                                                  --Chapman.

            Hoping that sleep might settle his brains. --Bunyan.

   4. To clear of dregs and impurities by causing them to sink;
      to render pure or clear; -- said of a liquid; as, to
      settle coffee, or the grounds of coffee.

   5. To restore or bring to a smooth, dry, or passable
      condition; -- said of the ground, of roads, and the like;
      as, clear weather settles the roads.

   6. To cause to sink; to lower; to depress; hence, also, to
      render close or compact; as, to settle the contents of a
      barrel or bag by shaking it.

   7. To determine, as something which is exposed to doubt or
      question; to free from unscertainty or wavering; to make
      sure, firm, or constant; to establish; to compose; to
      quiet; as, to settle the mind when agitated; to settle
      questions of law; to settle the succession to a throne; to
      settle an allowance.

            It will settle the wavering, and confirm the
            doubtful.                             --Swift.

   8. To adjust, as something in discussion; to make up; to
      compose; to pacify; as, to settle a quarrel.

   9. To adjust, as accounts; to liquidate; to balance; as, to
      settle an account.

   10. Hence, to pay; as, to settle a bill. [Colloq.] --Abbott.

   11. To plant with inhabitants; to colonize; to people; as,
       the French first settled Canada; the Puritans settled New
       England; Plymouth was settled in 1620.

   {To settle on} or {upon}, to confer upon by permanent grant;
      to assure to. ``I . . . have settled upon him a good
      annuity.'' --Addison.

   {To settle the land} (Naut.), to cause it to sink, or appear
      lower, by receding from it.

   Syn: To fix; establish; regulate; arrange; compose; adjust;
        determine; decide.

Settle \Set"tle\, v. i.
   1. To become fixed or permanent; to become stationary; to
      establish one's self or itself; to assume a lasting form,
      condition, direction, or the like, in place of a temporary
      or changing state.

            The wind came about and settled in the west.
                                                  --Bacon.

            Chyle . . . runs through all the intermediate colors
            until it settles in an intense red.   --Arbuthnot.

   2. To fix one's residence; to establish a dwelling place or
      home; as, the Saxons who settled in Britain.

   3. To enter into the married state, or the state of a
      householder.

            As people marry now and settle.       --Prior.

   4. To be established in an employment or profession; as, to
      settle in the practice of law.

   5. To become firm, dry, and hard, as the ground after the
      effects of rain or frost have disappeared; as, the roads
      settled late in the spring.

   6. To become clear after being turbid or obscure; to clarify
      by depositing matter held in suspension; as, the weather
      settled; wine settles by standing.

            A government, on such occasions, is always thick
            before it settles.                    --Addison.

   7. To sink to the bottom; to fall to the bottom, as dregs of
      a liquid, or the sediment of a reserveir.

   8. To sink gradually to a lower level; to subside, as the
      foundation of a house, etc.

   9. To become calm; to cease from agitation.

            Till the fury of his highness settle, Come not
            before him.                           --Shak.

   10. To adjust differences or accounts; to come to an
       agreement; as, he has settled with his creditors.

   11. To make a jointure for a wife.

             He sighs with most success that settles well.
                                                  --Garth.

Source : WordNet®

settle
     n : a long wooden bench with a back [syn: {settee}]

settle
     v 1: settle into a position, usually on a surface or ground;
          "dust settled on the roofs" [syn: {settle down}]
     2: bring to an end; settle conclusively; "The case was
        decided"; "The judge decided the case in favor of the
        plaintiff"; "The father adjudicated when the sons were
        quarreling over their inheritance" [syn: {decide}, {resolve},
         {adjudicate}]
     3: settle conclusively; come to terms; "We finally settled the
        argument" [syn: {square off}, {square up}, {determine}]
     4: take up residence and become established; "The immigrants
        settled in the Midwest" [syn: {locate}]
     5: come to terms; "After some discussion we finally made up"
        [syn: {reconcile}, {patch up}, {make up}, {conciliate}]
     6: go under, "The raft sank and its occupants drowned" [syn: {sink},
         {go down}, {go under}] [ant: {float}]
     7: become settled or established and stable in one's residence
        or life style; "He finally settled down" [syn: {root}, {take
        root}, {steady down}, {settle down}]
     8: become resolved, fixed, established, or quiet; "The roar
        settled to a thunder"; "The wind settled in the West"; "it
        is settling to rain"; "A cough settled in her chest"; "Her
        mood settled into lethargy"
     9: establish or develop as a residence; "He settled the farm
        200 years ago"; "This land was settled by Germans"
     10: come to rest
     11: become clear by the sinking of particles; "the liquid
         gradually settled"
     12: arrange or fix in the desired order; "She settled the
         teacart"
     13: accept despite complete satisfaction; "We settled for a
         lower price"
     14: end a legal dispute by arriving at a settlement; "The two
         parties finally settled"
     15: dispose of; make a financial settlement
     16: cause to become clear by forming a sediment (of liquids)
     17: sink down or precipitate; "the mud subsides when the waters
         become calm" [syn: {subside}]
     18: fix firmly; "He ensconced himself in the chair" [syn: {ensconce}]
     19: get one's revenge for a wrong or an injury; "I finally
         settled with my old enemy" [syn: {get back}]
     20: make final; put the last touches on; put into final form;
         "let's finalize the proposal" [syn: {finalize}, {finalise},
          {nail down}]
     21: form a community; "The Swedes settled in Minnesota"
     22: come as if by falling; "Night fell"; "Silence fell" [syn: {fall},
          {descend}]