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fundament

American  
[fuhn-duh-muhnt] / ˈfʌn də mənt /

noun

  1. the buttocks.

  2. the anus.

  3. a base or basic principle; underlying part; foundation.


fundament British  
/ ˈfʌndəmənt /

noun

  1. euphemistic the buttocks

  2. the natural features of the earth's surface, unaltered by man

  3. a base or foundation, esp of a building

  4. a theory, principle, or underlying basis

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of fundament

1250–1300; < Latin fundāmentum foundation; replacing Middle English fondement < Old French. See found 1, -ment

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And fundament is an old euphemism for “buttocks.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

Stevo Pendarovski, president of North Macedonia, called peace “the fundament of everything.”

From Seattle Times • Sep. 23, 2023

The Princeton-based composer, 32, collapses perceptions between East and West, electronic and acoustic, fundament and future.

From Washington Post • Jan. 22, 2022

Since the Renaissance, the fundament of Western civilization has been an embrace of rationalism, which has become foundational to governance, economics and technology.

From Salon • May 3, 2020

We have constructed the edifice of our modern civilization upon the fundament of wisdom that had been built at great pains by the people of the ancient world.

From Ancient Man The Beginning of Civilizations by Van Loon, Hendrik Willem

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