founder

¹ American  

[foun-der] / ˈfaʊn dər /

noun

1. a person who founds or establishes something, as a company or institution.

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founder ² American  

[foun-der] / ˈfaʊn dər /

verb (used without object)

1. (of a ship, boat, etc.) to fill with water and sink.

2. to fall or sink down, as buildings, ground, etc..

   Built on a former lake bed, the building has foundered nearly ten feet.

3. to become wrecked; fail utterly.

   The project foundered because public support was lacking.

   Synonyms:

   flop, perish, sink, topple, succumb, collapse

4. to stumble, break down, or go lame, as a horse.

   His mount foundered on the rocky path.

5. to become ill from overeating.

6. Veterinary Pathology. (of a horse) to suffer from laminitis.

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verb (used with object)

1. to cause to fill with water and sink.

   Rough seas had foundered the ship in mid-ocean.

2. Veterinary Pathology. to cause (a horse) to break down, go lame, or suffer from laminitis.

noun

1. Veterinary Pathology. laminitis.

founder ³ American  

[foun-der] / ˈfaʊn dər /

noun

1. a person who founds or casts metal, glass, etc.

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founder ¹ British  

/ ˈfaʊndə /

verb

1. (of a ship) to sink

2. to break down or fail

   the project foundered

3. to sink into or become stuck in soft ground

4. to fall in or give way; collapse

5. (of a horse) to stumble or go lame

6. archaic (of animals, esp livestock) to become ill from overeating

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noun

1. vet science another name for laminitis

founder ² British  

/ ˈfaʊndə /

noun

1. 1. a person who makes metal castings

   2. ( in combination )

      an iron founder

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founder ³ British  

/ ˈfaʊndə /

noun

1. a person who establishes an institution, company, society, etc

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Usage

Founder is sometimes wrongly used where flounder is meant: this unexpected turn of events left him floundering (not foundering )

Other Word Forms

• unfoundered adjective
• unfoundering adjective

Etymology

Origin of founder¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English found(o)ur, foundere, fundre “original builder of a city, church, castle, or city; founder of a country,” from Anglo-French fundur, from Old French fondeor, from Latin fundātōr-, stem of fundātor; found ¹; -er ¹ ( def. )

Origin of founder²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English foundren, funder, fonder, from Old French fondrer “to plunge to the bottom, submerge,” from Vulgar Latin fundorāre (unattested), derivative of fundor-, an s -stem noun interpreted as stem of Latin fundus, actually an o -stem noun (stem fund- ) “bottom”

Origin of founder³

First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English foundour, founder, from Old French fondeur, from fondre “to melt, cast”; found ³, -er ¹

Example Sentences

It was there, while speaking to the charity's founder, Wynford Elis Owen, she saw "a glimmer of hope in my mum's eyes".

From BBC

Its surviving founders returned to civilian life - Jagari went to work in the mines to support his family.

From BBC

At one weekend session, “Evolving RL-Based Reasoning Data in LLMs,” a startup founder who specialized in that esoteric area of research asked a reporter why they were at such a boring talk.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Journal previously reported that the company’s estranged founder, Chip Wilson, had privately been taking steps to run a proxy fight, frustrated with Lululemon “losing its cool,” among other things.

From The Wall Street Journal

Mittal, founder of the Oakland Institute, a human rights and development focused think tank in California, described Magnum's approach as a "public smear campaign" and said the allegations were unfounded.

From BBC

Related Words

• architect
• author
• benefactor
• builder
• creator
• designer
• inventor
• organizer
• patron
• planner