settle down = marry ...and something else

[vil]

Dear teachers,

Would you be kind enough to give me a hand in interpretation of the expression in bold in the following excerpt from an entertainment news that includes an interview with Aniston in which she talks about her new love John Mayer and her ex-husband Brad Pitt, whom she divorced in 2005?

"I am not having (Mayer's) baby. And I have not popped the question," the actress said in response to rumors claiming she and Mayer are getting ready to settle down.

I suppose that the expression in question in the present case means “marry” but what about the interpretation of the following sentence which involves the same experssion?

“Come on, children, it’s time to settle down.”

Thank you for your efforts.

Regards,

V.

[MrPedantic]

Hello Vil,

"Settle down" in the second example seems to imply "to stop behaving in an excitable fashion".

"Settle down" in the context of marriage is similar; it implies "giving up one's wild ways and creating a stable and orderly family home with one partner".

Birds "settle" on their nests; they "settle down" when, after fluffing up their feathers, they lower themselves onto their eggs.

Best wishes,

MrP