founder

English

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

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• Rhymes: -aʊndə(r)

Etymology 1

From Old French fondeor, from Latin fundātor

Noun

founder (plural founders)

1. One who founds, establishes, and erects; one who lays a foundation; an author; one from whom something originates; one who endows.
2. (genetics) Someone for whose parents one has no data.

Translations

one who founds, establishes, and erects; one who lays a foundation; an author

Bengali: প্রতিষ্ঠাতা (bn) (prôtishţhata) Czech: zakladatel (cs) m. Dutch: stichter (nl) m., grondlegger (nl) m., oprichter (nl) m. Estonian: asutaja (et) French: fondateur (fr) m. fondatrice (fr) f. German: Gründer (de) m. Greek: ιδρυτής (el) (idrytís) m. Hungarian: alapító (hu) Kurdish: Sorani: نوێنه‌ر (ku) (nwaenar)

Latin: conditor (la) m., creātor (la) m., fundātor (la) m. Luxembourgish: Grënner (lb) m. Persian: بنیانگذار (fa) (bonyângozâr) Polish: założyciel (pl) m., fundator (pl) m. Romanian: fondator (ro) m., întemeietor (ro) m. Russian: основатель (ru) (Osnovatel') m. Scottish Gaelic: neach-stèidheachaidh (gd) m. Spanish: fundador (es) m.

someone for whose parents one has no data

Etymology 2

From Middle French fondeur, from Latin fundo (“pour, melt, cast”)

Noun

founder (plural founders)

1. The iron worker in charge of the blast furnace and the smelting operation.
   • 1957, H.R. Schubert, History of the British Iron and Steel Industry, p. 161.

     The term 'founder' was applied in the British iron industry long afterwards to the ironworker in charge of the blast furnace and the smelting operation.

Translations

The iron worker in charge of the blast furnace and the smelting operation

Catalan: fonedor (ca) m. French: fondeur (fr) m.

Greek: μεταλλοχύτης (el) (metallochýtis) m. Russian: плавильщик (ru) (plavíl'ščik) m., литейщик (ru) (litéjščik) m.

Etymology 3

From Middle French fondrer (“send to the bottom”), from Latin fundus (“bottom”)

Verb

founder (third-person singular simple present founders, present participle foundering, simple past and past participle foundered)

1. Fill with water and sink.
   • 1719, Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe

     We were not much more than a quarter of an hour out of our ship but we saw her sink, and then I understood for the first time what was meant by a ship foundering in the sea.

2. To fall; to stumble and go lame, as a horse.
3. To fail; to miscarry.

Translations

to sink

Dutch: zinken (nl) French: couler (fr), sombrer (fr) German: sinken (de) Greek: βυθίζομαι (el) (vythízomai), καταποντίζομαι (el) (katapontízomai), βουλιάζω (el) (vouliázo)

Portuguese: afundir (pt) Spanish: hundir (es), zozobrar (es) Swedish: kantra (sv)

to stumble

Greek: παραπατώ (el) (parapató), παραπαίω (el) (parapaío)

to fail

German: scheitern (de) Greek: αποτυγχάνω (el) (apotyncháno), ναυαγώ (el) (navagó)

Spanish: fracasar (es), zozobrar (es)

Usage notes

Frequently confused with flounder. Both may be applied to the same situation, the difference is the severity of the action: floundering (struggling to maintain position) comes first, followed by foundering (losing it by falling, sinking or failing).

Anagrams

• refound

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Anglo-Norman

Verb

founder

1. Late Anglo-Norman spelling of funder

Conjugation

• Anglo-Norman conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

   Conjugation of founder

		simple			compound
infinitive		founder			aveir foundé
gerund		en foundant			Use the gerund of aveir followed by the past participle
present participle		foundant
past participle		foundé
person		singular			plural
		first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative		jeo, jou	tu	il	nos, nous	vos, vous	ils
simple tenses	present	fount	fount	fount	foundons	foundez, foundés	foundent
	imperfect	foundeie	foundeies	foundeit	foundions, foundiions	foundiez, foundiiez	foundeient
	past historic	founda	foundas	founda	foundames	foundastes	founderent
	future	founderai	founderas	foundera	founderons	founderez, foundereiz	founderont
	conditional	foundereie	foundereied	foundereie	founderions, founderiions	founderiez, founderiiez	foundereient
compound tenses	present perfect	Use the present tense of aveir followed by the past participle
	pluperfect	Use the imperfect tense of aveir followed by the past participle
	past anterior	Use the past historic tense of aveir followed by the past participle
	future perfect	Use the future tense of aveir followed by the past participle
	conditional perfect	Use the conditional tense of aveir followed by the past participle
subjunctive		que jeo, jou	que tu	qu’il	que nos, nous	que vos, vous	qu’ils
simple tenses	present	fount	foundes	founde	foundons	foundez	foundent
	imperfect	foundasse	foundasses	foundast	foundissons	foundissez, foundissiez	foundassent
compound tenses	past	Use the present subjunctive of aveir followed by the past participle
	pluperfect	Use the imperfect subjunctive of aveir followed by the past participle
imperative		–	tu	–	nos, nous	vos, vous	–
		—	fount	—	foundons	foundez	—