foundling

English

Etymology

From Middle English foundlyng, fondeyng, variants of Middle English fyndling, fyndlyng, equivalent to found +‎ -ling.

Noun

foundling (plural foundlings)

1. An abandoned child, left by its parent(s), often a baby left at a convent or similar safe place.
   • 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling.
   • 1776, Adam Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations:

     In foundling hospitals, and among the children brought up by parish charities, the mortality is still greater than among those of the common people.

   • 1794, Thomas Paine, The Age of Reason (Part I):

     Moses was a foundling; Jesus Christ was born in a stable; and Mahomet was a mule driver.

Derived terms

• foundling wheel

Translations

abandoned child, left by its parent

• Arabic: لَقِيط m (laqīṭ)

  Gulf Arabic: لقيط m (laqīṭ)

• Armenian: ընկեցիկ (hy) (ənkecʻik)
• Bulgarian: подхвърлено дете n (podhvǎrleno dete)
• Czech: nalezenec (cs) m
• Danish: hittebarn (da) n
• Dutch: vondeling (nl) m
• Finnish: löytölapsi (fi)
• French: enfant trouvé (fr) m
• German: Findelkind (de) n
• Greek: έκθετο n (éktheto)
• Hungarian: lelenc (hu), talált gyermek
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: trovatello m
• Polish: znajda (pl) f
• Portuguese: exposto (pt) m, abandonado (pt) m
• Russian: найдёныш (ru) m (najdjónyš), подки́дыш (ru) m (podkídyš)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: на̀хоче n, на̀ход m, находник m, нахоткиња f

  Roman: nàhoče (sh) n, nàhod (sh) m, nahodnik m, nahotkinja f

• Spanish: expósito (es) m (dated)
• Swedish: hittebarn n

See also

• oblate

Anagrams

• unfolding