foundling

[ found-ling ]

/ ˈfaʊnd lɪŋ /

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noun

an infant or small child found abandoned; a child without a known parent or guardian.

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Origin of foundling

First recorded in 1250–1300, foundling is from the Middle English word found(e)ling.See found², -ling¹

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH foundling

fondling, foundling

Words nearby foundling

founderous, founders' shares, founder's type, founding father, Founding Fathers, foundling, foundling hospital, found object, found poem, foundress, foundrous

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use foundling in a sentence

But not everyone agrees with the use of the modern foundling wheel.
Europe’s Growing Crisis of Abandoned Babies|Barbie Latza Nadeau|July 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
It is true that the parents so provided think more of the twenty-five francs than they do of the foundling.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol|William J. Locke
The little blue placard hung over the cot, as in the foundling hospitals, states the child's nationality: "Moldo, Wallachian."
The Nabob|Alphonse Daudet
The Foundling Hospital is another of the public institution of which the people are justly proud.
Ways of War and Peace|Delia Austrian

Much in the same way many a modern maiden places her shame-covered infant in the turn-table of a foundling institution.
Ancient Faiths And Modern|Thomas Inman
Perhaps he himself had been a foundling laid on the doorstep long ago, belonging neither to his mother nor to anyone else.
Sinister Street, vol. 1|Compton Mackenzie

British Dictionary definitions for foundling

foundling

/ (ˈfaʊndlɪŋ) /

noun

an abandoned infant whose parents are not known

Word Origin for foundling

C13: foundeling; see find

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

foundling

Origin of foundling

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH foundling

Words nearby foundling

Words related to foundling

How to use foundling in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for foundling

Word Origin for foundling