Founding Fathers

American  

plural noun

1. the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787.

2. (often lowercase) any group of founders.

   the town's founding fathers.

---

Founding Fathers Cultural  

1. A general name for male American patriots during the Revolutionary War, especially the signers of the Declaration of Independence and those who drafted the Constitution. John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington were all Founding Fathers.

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Founding Fathers

Stevens explains how winemakers in Jefferson’s beloved Virginia are filling bottles that the Founding Fathers would be proud of.

From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026

We are, in Lincoln’s words, “blood of the blood, and flesh of the flesh” of the Founding Fathers, because America’s inheritance belongs to those who see themselves in its promise.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

Painter stressed that the Founding Fathers were so afraid of foreign influence — and the possibility of getting dragged into alliances and wars — that they put provisions like that clause in the Constitution.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026

George Washington and other Founding Fathers graced Pez dispensers, coasters and the cover of Mad Magazine.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026

Two Founding Fathers, Benjamin Franklin and George Washington, look over the army in 1775 in Massachusetts.

From "George Washington, Spymaster" by Thomas B. Allen