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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Settlement: Legal Agreement & Community Meanings (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：legal agreement (settlement)

settlement 🔊

/ˈsetl.mənt/

An official agreement that ends a disagreement or a lawsuit, where both sides agree on certain terms.

legal agreement 🔊

➕

/ˈliːɡəl əˈɡriːmənt/

A formal agreement that ends a disagreement or lawsuit, typically involving mutual concessions.

📁 Category：Laws & Regulations 🔖 Level：intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From 'settle' (to arrange or resolve) + suffix '-ment' (state or process).

💡 Mnemonic

A settlement is what you get when you 'settle' a fight or 'settle' down in a new place.

📖 Example

After months of negotiation, the two companies reached a settlement out of court to avoid a lengthy legal battle. 🔊 After months of negotiation, the two companies reached a settlement out of court to avoid a lengthy legal battle.

🔗 Collocations

reach a settlement – to successfully agree on terms to end a dispute

out-of-court settlement – a resolution made without going to trial

negotiate a settlement – to discuss terms to end a disagreement

🔄 Synonyms

agreement (n.) – a document or arrangement in which both parties accept terms

resolution (n.) – the act of solving a conflict or problem

compromise (n.) – a mutual concession that ends a dispute

🚫 Antonyms

dispute (n.) – a disagreement or argument that has not been resolved

trial (n.) – a formal court proceeding when no settlement is reached

deadlock (n.) – a situation where no agreement is possible

🌱 Derivatives

settle (v.) – to resolve or end a disagreement

settler (n.) – a person who makes a settlement an agreement

unsettled (adj.) – not yet resolved or agreed upon

📖 Cultural Story

The word traces back to Old English 'setlan' (to cause to sit). Its legal sense emerged in the 17th century referring to the resolution of disputes; the community sense refers to a group of people 'settling' in a place to live.

Meaning 2：small community (settlement)

settlement 🔊

/ˈsetl.mənt/

A small community or village where people have built homes and started to live and work, often new or from history.

small community 🔊

➕

/smɔːl kəˈmjuːnəti/

A small group of homes or a village where people live and work, often newly established or historically significant.

📁 Category：Buildings & Places 🔖 Level：elementary

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

Archaeologists discovered the remains of an ancient settlement near the river, dating back over 3,000 years. 🔊 Archaeologists discovered the remains of an ancient settlement near the river, dating back over 3,000 years.

🔗 Collocations

ancient settlement – a historical place where people lived long ago

human settlement – a place where people have established homes

farming settlement – a small community centered around agriculture

🔄 Synonyms

village (n.) – a small rural community of houses

colony (n.) – a group of people who settle in a new place

hamlet (n.) – a very small village

🚫 Antonyms

city (n.) – a large and densely populated urban area

wilderness (n.) – an uninhabited and uncultivated area

desert (n.) – a barren region with very few inhabitants

🌱 Derivatives

settle (v.) – to move to a new place and make a home

settler (n.) – a person who moves to a new place to live

unsettled (adj.) – not yet lived in or established