SETTLEMENT | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary

Meaning of settlement in English

settlement
noun
uk
/ˈset.əl.mənt/ us
/ˈset̬.əl.mənt/

settlement noun (AGREE)

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C1 [ C or U ]
an official agreement that finishes an argument:
It now seems unlikely that it will be possible to negotiate/reach a peaceful settlement of the conflict.
As part of their divorce settlement, Jeff agreed to let Polly keep the house.
Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples
a decision or arrangement between groups or people
  • agreementDo we have an agreement?
  • understandingWe had an understanding that the businesses would merge, but never got that in writing.
  • gentleman's agreementHe and his builder have a gentleman's agreement that if there are spare materials left after working on the flat, the builder can take them home.
  • dealDo we have a deal?
  • contractThe basketball player was signed to a multimillion-dollar contract with a new team this week.
  • accordThe leaders of the four countries signed a peace accord.
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C2 [ C ]
an arrangement to end a disagreement involving a law having been broken, without taking it to a law court, or an amount of money paid as part of such an arrangement:
They reached an out-of-court settlement.
The actor accepted a settlement of $100,000 from the magazine.
More examplesFewer examples
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
International relations: diplomacy & mediation
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

settlement noun (HOME)

C2 [ C or U ]
a place where people come to live or the process of settling in such a place:
A large Roman settlement has been discovered just outside the French town.
Many Native Americans were killed during the settlement of the American West by Europeans in the 19th century.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Towns & regions: towns, cities & villages (general)
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settlement noun (PAYMENT)

[ C or U ]
the action of paying money to someone:
The settlement of his debts took him several months.
I enclose a cheque in settlement of your claim.
UK Her mother made a settlement on her (= made a formal arrangement to give her money) when she started college.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Costs & expenses
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settlement noun (MOVEMENT LOWER)

[ U ]
the process of the slow sinking of a building or the ground
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Moving downwards
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(Definition of settlement from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

settlement | American Dictionary

settlement
noun
us
/ˈset̬·əl·mənt/

settlement noun (PAYMENT)

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[ C/U ]
payment of money that is owed:
[ U ] We enclose a check in settlement of your claim.

settlement noun (PLACE TO LIVE)

[ C/U ]
the act of going to live in a new place where few people have lived before, or the place where people have come to live:
[ U ] Early settlement developed around a copper mine.
[ C ] Permanent European settlements were established here in the 1830s.

settlement noun (AGREEMENT)

[ C ]
an official agreement that ends an argument:
Both sides are working to negotiate a peace settlement.
[ C ]
A settlement is also an arrangement, often with payment of money, to end a legal disagreement without taking it to court:
The actor agreed to a $100,000 settlement from the newspaper.
(Definition of settlement from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

settlement | Business English

settlement
noun
uk
/ˈsetlmənt/ us
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[ C or U ]
an official agreement or decision that ends an argument, often involving a payment of money:
negotiate/reach a settlement
The lawyer negotiated an out-of-court settlement of $2 million.
[ C or U ]
payment of a debt:
in settlement of sth I wrote a check for $200 in settlement of my debts.
Be sure to make full and final settlement by the repayment deadline.
[ U ]   FINANCE, STOCK MARKET
the process by which shares and money are exchanged at the end of a day of trading on a financial market:
The Stock Exchange has an electronic share settlement system.
[ U ]
the process by which payments are made on cheques:
This charge is made for the returned cheque due to insufficient funds for cheque settlement.
See also
the Bank for International Settlements
cash settlement
rolling settlement
(Definition of settlement from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of settlement

settlement
People described the region as basically one of thick forests, interspersed with swidden settlements, lorded over by despotically powerful janmis.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The altar represented the same sacred gathering around a common centre as did the hearth in the first human settlements.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
I would suggest extreme variation, especially in the hinterland settlements.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Small, kinship-based settlements were headed by a leader, called mbuyi or mtwa, who held secular as well as ritual authority.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
What is impor tant is how these settlements were perceived by locals and the upheaval they brought to their lives.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
They were designed as autonomous settlements capable of guaranteeing work, housing and services efficiently and cheaply, within a territory totally lacking any kind of urbanization.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
While fields were enclosed, settlements were dispersed, farm organisation made geometric, the inside of tenant farmhouses were not rationalised or subdivided into individual spaces.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The opportunities to monopolize trade flows are influenced by the number of alternative routes that have to be controlled and the distribution of settlements.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In addition, membership in security-oriented organizations reduces the length of rivalry as such organizations provide instruments for the peaceful negotiation of settlements.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Neighbouring villages would typically share a common grazing area to prevent stock rustlers from attacking boys caring for livestock far from the settlements.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
If refugees were free to live outside settlements, and were offered appropriate supportive assistance there, their capacity for developmental progress might be expected to increase.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In these areas it is quite common for disagreements between individuals from the two groups to degenerate into ethnic conflicts engulfing several settlements.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The courts later adopted a less restrictive concept of locality, recognising that settlements might embrace more than one parish.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The same cultural categories that legitimised the welfare settlements of the past are reflected in the heated welfare debates of today.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In fact, the cosmopolitan and patriarchal character of the new settlements increasingly challenged the more formal political constructions inherited from an ancient past.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
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These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with settlement

settlement

These are words often used in combination with settlement.

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agricultural settlement
The residents of a remote agricultural settlement (' kibbutz '), aged 40 and over, were also included in the sample.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
amicable settlement
For when neither party voluntarily comes to him for support, he will offer to mediate an amicable settlement.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
ancient settlement
All of the wells cited in this paper are located near ancient settlement remains.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with settlement
What is the pronunciation of settlement?
 
C1,C2,C2

Translations of settlement

in Chinese (Traditional)
同意, （結束爭端的）協定, 庭外和解…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
同意, （结束争端的）协议, 庭外和解…
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in Spanish
acuerdo, asentamiento, colonia…
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in Portuguese
decisão, acordo, assentamento…
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in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
in Norwegian
in Urdu
in Ukrainian
in Russian
in Telugu
in Arabic
in Bengali
in Czech
in Indonesian
in Thai
in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Korean
in Italian
समझौता, वसाहत…
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合意, 調停, 解決…
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sözleşme, antlaşma, yeni yerleşim bölgesi…
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accord [masculine], colonie [feminine], accord…
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acord, assentament, colònia…
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regeling, nederzetting…
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ஒரு வாதத்தை முடிக்கும் அதிகாரப்பூர்வ ஒப்பந்தம், ஒரு சட்டத்தை ஒரு சட்ட நீதிமன்றத்திற்கு எடுத்துச் செல்லாமல், அல்லது அத்தகைய ஏற்பாட்டின் ஒரு பகுதியாக செலுத்தப்பட்ட பணம் தொடர்பான கருத்து வேறுபாடுகளை முடிவுக்குக் கொண்டுவருவதற்கான ஏற்பாடு…
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(विवाद को ख़त्म करने हेतु) एक अधिकारिक समाधान, (अदालत के बाहर या पैसे ले कर किया गया एक) समझौता, उपनिवेश…
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સમાધાન, સમજૂતી કરવી, વસાહત…
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forlig, bosættelse, -bosættelse…
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uppgörelse, bosättning, nybygge…
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persetujuan, penempatan…
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das Übereinkommen, die Siedlung…
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forlik [neuter], avtale [masculine], løsning [masculine]…
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فیصلہ, تصفیہ نامہ, سمجھوتہ…
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угода, домовленість, поселення…
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соглашение, поселение…
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ఒక వాదనను ముగించే అధికారిక ఒప్పందం, చట్టాన్ని అతిక్రమించడం గురించిన వివాదాన్ని న్యాయస్థానానికి తీసుకువెళ్ళకుండా ముగించడానికి చేసుకునే ఏర్పాటు, లేదా అటువంటి ఏర్పాటులో భాగంగా చెల్లించిన డబ్బు…
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تَسوِية, مُستَوطَنة…
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নিষ্পত্তি, কোর্টের বাইরে আর্থিক লেনদেনের মাধ্যমে মীমাংসা, বসতি…
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dohoda, osada…
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persetujuan, permukiman…
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การตกลง, ชุมชนล็ก ๆ…
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sự dàn xếp, khu định cư…
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rozstrzygnięcie, osiedle, osada…
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합의, 정착…
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accordo, insediamento, colonia…
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in unison

UK
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US
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acting or speaking together, or at the same time

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