founder

English

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

• Audio (US)

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• Rhymes: -aʊndə(ɹ)

Etymology 1

From Old French fondeur, 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

• Arabic: مؤسس (ar) (mu'asis)
• Bengali: প্রতিষ্ঠাতা (bn) (prôtishţhata)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 創辦人 (cmn), 创办人 (cmn) (chuàngbànrén), 創立者 (cmn), 创立者 (cmn) (chuànglìzhě)

• Czech: zakladatel (cs) m
• Dutch: stichter (nl) m, grondlegger (nl) m, oprichter (nl) m
• Estonian: asutaja (et)
• Finnish: perustaja (fi)
• French: fondateur (fr) m, fondatrice (fr) f
• German: Gründer (de) m, Gründerin (de) f
• Greek: ιδρυτής (el) (idrytís) m, θεμελιωτής (el) (themeliotís) m
• Hungarian: alapító (hu)

• Japanese: 創設者 (ja) (そうせつしゃ, sōsetsusha)
• 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) (osnovátelʹ) m, основательница (ru) (osnovátelʹnica) f, учредитель (ru) (učredítelʹ) m, учредительница (ru) (učredítelʹnica) f
• Scottish Gaelic: neach-stèidheachaidh (gd) m
• Spanish: fundador (es) m

someone for whose parents one has no data

• Russian: найдёныш (ru) (najdjónyš) m

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.

2. One who casts metals in various forms; a caster.

   a founder of cannon, bells, hardware, or printing types

Translations

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

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

• Greek: χύτης (el) (chýtis) 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. (intransitive) Of a ship, to 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. (intransitive) To fall; to stumble and go lame, as a horse.
3. (transitive) To disable or lame (a horse) by causing internal inflammation and soreness in the feet or limbs.
4. (intransitive) To fail; to miscarry.

Translations

to sink

• Dutch: zinken (nl), kelderen (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: καταρρέω (el) (katarréo), γκρεμίζομαι (el) (gkremízomai)

to fail

• German: scheitern (de)
• Greek: ναυαγώ (el) (navagó), καταποντίζομαι (el) (katapontízomai)

• 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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Old French

Verb

founder

1. Late Anglo-Norman spelling of funder

Conjugation

• Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

   Conjugation of founder (see also Appendix:Old French verbs)

		simple			compound
infinitive		founder			avoir foundé, foundez
gerund		en foundant			Use the gerund of avoir followed by the past participle
present participle		foundant
past participle		foundé, foundez
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	foundoe, foundeie, foundoie	foundoes, foundeies, foundoies	foundot, foundeit, foundoit	foundions, foundiions	foundiez, foundiiez	foundoent, foundient, foundoient
	past historic	founda	foundas	founda	foundames	foundastes	founderent
	future	founderai	founderas	foundera	founderons	founderez, foundereiz	founderont
	conditional	founderoe, foundereie, founderoie	founderoes, foundereied, founderoied	founderot, foundereie, founderoie	founderions, founderiions	founderiez, founderiiez	founderoent, foundereient, founderoient
compound tenses	present perfect	Use the present tense of avoir followed by the past participle
	pluperfect	Use the imperfect tense of avoir followed by the past participle
	past anterior	Use the past historic tense of avoir followed by the past participle
	future perfect	Use the future tense of avoir followed by the past participle
	conditional perfect	Use the conditional tense of avoir 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	fount	fount	foundons	foundez	foundent
	imperfect	foundasse	foundasses	foundast	foundissons	foundissez, foundissiez	foundassent
compound tenses	past	Use the present subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle
	pluperfect	Use the imperfect subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle
imperative		–	tu	–	nos, nous	vos, vous	–
		—	fount	—	foundons	foundez	—