set on foot

English

Alternative forms

• set afoot

Etymology

Compare the identical French mettre sur pied, of which this may be a calque.

Verb

set on foot (third-person singular simple present sets on foot, present participle setting on foot, simple past and past participle set on foot)

1. (transitive) To originate; to put into action.
   • 1872, George Eliot, Middlemarch, Book I, chapter 3:

     Meanwhile that little disappointment made her delight the more in Sir James Chettam's readiness to set on foot the desired improvements.

Usage notes

Not to be confused with set foot on.

Translations

Translations

• Finnish: panna alulle
• French: mettre sur pied (fr)

Anagrams

• footnotes, footstone