founding father

noun

1

: an originator of an institution or movement : founder

2

often capitalized both Fs : a leading figure in the founding of the U.S.

specifically : a member of the American Constitutional Convention of 1787

Synonyms

• author
• begetter
• creator
• establisher
• father
• founder
• generator
• inaugurator
• initiator
• instituter
• institutor
• originator
• sire

Examples of founding father in a Sentence

a tribute to Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and the other Founding Fathers

Theodor Herzl is often credited as the founding father of modern Zionism.

Recent Examples on the Web

One of the founding fathers who drafted and signed the Declaration of Independence. —Adam Smyth, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 May 2024

Although one of the scene’s founding fathers, Frankie Knuckles, was playing primordial house at the Chicago outpost of the Warehouse in the late Seventies, this event’s organizers have chosen to mark 1984 as year one for house because of the commercial success of several singles released that year. —Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 15 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1892, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

founding father

noun

found·​ing father

ˈfau̇n-diŋ-

1

: one that starts or helps to start an institution or a movement

2

often capitalized : a leading figure in the founding of the U.S.

Legal Definition

founding father

noun

found·​ing fa·​ther

often capitalized both Fs

: a leading figure in the founding of the U.S.

specifically : a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1787