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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

setback.

An obstacle, delay, disadvantage, or blow (an adverse event which slows down, or prevents progress towards a desired outcome).

7 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈsɛtbæk/
  1. 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.
  2. Any adverse event, defeat, or impediment of progress.

    broadly
  3. The required distance between a structure and a road.

    US
  4. A step-like recession in a wall.

    Setbacks were initially used for structural reasons, but now are often mandated by land use codes.
  5. An offset to the temperature setting of a thermostat to cover a period when more or less heating is required than usual.

  6. A backset; a countercurrent; an eddy.

    archaic · possibly
  7. A backset; a check; a repulse; a relapse.

    archaic
Where this word comes from

Deverbal from set back. Compare drawback.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.