phrasal verb · neutral

set about

/sɛt əˈbaʊt/set a·BOUT

speakingtask2

begin to do something, especially to tackle a problem or task

Examples

“Once the funding arrived, the team set about collecting data from local households.”

“She set about organising the volunteers without any delay.”

“In the exam task, students should set about explaining both causes and effects.”

Band 8 sentence

“To investigate the claim, I set about interviewing residents in three different neighbourhoods and analysing the responses.”

Collocations

set about + V-ing (set about tackling the problem)
set about a task / set about collecting data

Word family

set about phrasal verb (base)sets about phrasal verb (3rd sg)setting about phrasal verb (gerund)set about (past: set about) phrasal verb (past)

Common mistakes

start about→set about

begin about→set about

Say it for a higher band

5start→6begin→7+set about

Synonyms

tackle

begin

Easily confused

go about

“She went about her daily chores without complaining.”

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In set …

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