foundational

American  

[foun-dey-shuh-nl] / faʊnˈdeɪ ʃə nl /

Rarely foundationary

adjective

1. of or relating to the basis or groundwork on which something rests or is built; needing to be understood or established at the beginning.

   We believe that fostering a strong local community is a foundational component of our inner-city scholarship program, guiding everything else we do.

---

Other Word Forms

• foundationally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of foundational

foundation ( def. ) + -al ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

foundational

The research represents one of the most comprehensive empirical tests yet of a foundational idea in evolutionary biology.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026

Needham analyst Ryan Koontz told MarketWatch that all of the companies in the ETF’s holdings are “current or potential leaders in supplying foundational technologies in AI/cloud infrastructure.”

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

Our field’s foundational laws, regulatory guidelines and ethical mandates stipulate that organ donation must never influence or interfere with the degree or timing of one’s medical care.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

In a post on X she said that the CSD "stands for freedom, dignity and equal rights -- the foundational values of the EU".

From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026

We cannot understand science without studying the history of these foundational concepts.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• central
• constitutional
• crucial
• elemental
• elementary
• essential
• indispensable
• integral
• intrinsic
• major
• necessary
• paramount
• principal
• radical
• significant
• structural
• theoretical
• underlying
• vital