setter

Etymology 1

From Middle English settere, equivalent to set + -er. Compare West Frisian setter, Dutch zetter, German Low German Setter, German Setzer.

noun

1. A typesetter.
2. One who sets something, such as a challenge or an examination.
   The exam was so hard we assumed the question setter must have been in a bad mood.
   In this sample, twenty of the twenty-seven fire setters received a primary or secondary diagnosis of conduct disorder, compared with only eleven of twenty-seven nonsetters. 2000, Rita Wicks-Nelson, Allen C. Israel, Behavior Disorders of Childhood, page 188
   One of the most admired and best-known crossword setters in the English language, Graham was known for his idiosyncratic style and extended anagrams. 2013-11-26, John Plunkett, “Rev John Graham, aka crossword setter Araucaria, dies aged 92”, in The Guardian
3. A long-haired breed of gundog.
   She has a spaniel and a red setter.
   The two Gordon setters came obediently to heel. Sir Oswald Feiling winced as he turned to go home. He had felt a warning twinge of lumbago. 1931, Francis Beeding, “7/2”, in The Norwich Victims
4. (volleyball) The player who is responsible for setting, or passing, the ball to teammates for an attack.
5. (object-oriented programming) A function used to modify the value of some property of an object, contrasted with the getter.
   Coordinate term: getter
6. (sports, in combinations) A game or match that lasts a certain number of sets.
   It was desperately close until all but the closing moments, and for that we had the 32nd-ranked [Julien] Benneteau to thank for bringing the fight out in [Roger] Federer, whose thirst for these long battles has waned over the past couple of years. For a player regarded by many as the greatest of all time his record in completed five-setters is ordinary: now 20 wins, 16 losses. 29 June 2012, Kevin Mitchell, “Roger Federer back from Wimbledon 2012 brink to beat Julien Benneteau”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 2016-11-15
7. One who hunts victims for sharpers.
8. One who adapts words to music in composition.
9. A shallow seggar for porcelain.

Etymology 2

verb

1. (UK, dialect, transitive) To cut the dewlap (of a cow or ox), and insert a seton, so as to cause an issue.