founder

1 of 4

noun (1)

found·​er ˈfau̇n-dər 

: one that founds or establishes

the founder of a company

the founder of psychoanalysis

founder

2 of 4

verb

foun·​der ˈfau̇n-dər 

foundered; foundering ˈfau̇n-d(ə-)riŋ  ; founders

intransitive verb

1

of a horse : to become disabled

especially : to go lame

His horse foundered while he was still five miles from home.

2

: to give way : collapse

Every once in a while, perhaps as a consequence of small earthquakes or other tectonic movements … these muddy banks foundered and slid into the adjoining stagnant basin …

—Stephen Jay Gould

3

: to become submerged : sink

In the early hours of the 7th of December, a German liner named the Deutschland, sailing from Bremen to New York, foundered and broke up on the Kentish coast.

—Guy Davenport

4

: to encounter misfortune : fail

They were Hollywood's happiest couple right up to the moment the marriage foundered.

—John Gregory Dunne

transitive verb

: to disable (a domesticated animal, such as a horse or cow) especially as a result of excessive feeding or poor nutrition : to cause founder in

It can be caused by excess sugar in the horses' diet. … new spring grass is the most sugar-filled and, therefore, the most likely to founder a horse.

—Desirai Schild

founder

3 of 4

noun (2)

foun·​der ˈfau̇n-dər 

: inflammation of and damage to the laminae (see lamina sense 4) and coffin bone in the hoof of a domesticated animal (such as a horse or cow) that is typically caused by poor diet, obesity, or diseases associated with inflammation : laminitis

The laminae are what hold the bone to the hoof. When they become compromised and inflamed, they cause severe pain and lameness. If they start to separate from the bone, it will cause sinking of the bone within the hoof which is called founder …

—Lainie Kringen-Scholtz

founder

4 of 4

noun (3)

found·​er ˈfau̇n-dər 

: one that founds metal

especially : typefounder

Did you know?

Founder is related to Latin fundus, meaning "bottom" or "base." When something "founders," it usually hits the bottom in one sense or another. When a ship founders, it sinks to the bottom of the sea, for example, and if your endeavor is foundering, it isn't doing well and is therefore headed downward.

Synonyms

Noun (1)

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

Verb

• bomb
• collapse
• crater
• fail
• flame out
• flop
• flunk
• fold
• miss
• strike out
• tank
• wash out

Examples of founder in a Sentence

Verb

Her career foundered, and she moved from job to job for several years.

trying to save a foundering career

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Plan it Condé Nast Traveler Top Travel specialist Cherri Briggs, founder of Explore Inc., orchestrated our multifaceted six-night trans-Okavango trip with signature deftness, recruiting guide Mike Hill of Endeavour Safaris, who has led trips in Botswana for more than three decades. —Alex Postman, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Apr. 2024

Finger took the lead, along with another founder of the unit—Roberto Cabral, a boyish-looking man of fifty-five. —Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024

The activist and philanthropist is married to James Murdoch, the liberal-leaning son of Rupert Murdoch, the founder of Fox News. —Neda Ulaby, NPR, 1 Apr. 2024

Mountainside Fitness founder Tom Hatten was the seller. —Catherine Reagor, The Arizona Republic, 1 Apr. 2024

Irving Fain: Bowery Farming Irving Fain is founder & CEO of Bowery Farming, the largest vertical farming company in the US. —Heather Wishart-Smith, Forbes, 30 Mar. 2024

After his retirement in 2008 after 48 years, founder Valentino was successfully succeeded by two of his former acolytes, Piccioli and Maria Grazia Chuiri, who subsequently decamped to Dior. —Merle Ginsberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Mar. 2024

When news leaked Alameda’s balance sheet was built from sand, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao rushed to liquidate his holdings in FTX’s unbacked cryptocurrency. —Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024

Hamlet founder Sunil Rajaraman said the eight-person company, which was founded just last year, is working on expanding its operations to offer the same services to other Bay Area cities. —Isha Trivedi, The Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2024

Verb

Trian Partners is revealing more detail on its plans to shake up Disney, should founder Nelson Peltz and fellow nominee Jay Rasulo be elected to Disney’s corporate board next month. —Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Mar. 2024

But his initial effort to take over the Progressive Conservative Party foundered in 1976, when the party stood in opposition to Pierre Trudeau’s Liberal Party government. —Alan Cowell, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024

Past efforts to unionize Southern auto plants foundered in the face of local opposition from conservative politicians and skepticism from workers. —Jeanne Whalen, Washington Post, 18 Mar. 2024

The Collingwood, a large freighter that had been monitoring the foundering ship, rescued all 16 crew members—but Burke remained on the Arlington. —Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Feb. 2024

As his campaign foundered, DeSantis focused his resources on Iowa. —Susan Page, USA TODAY, 16 Jan. 2024

An artist and free spirit, Noni encouraged her husband’s performing aspirations when his first dream — playing pro football — foundered. —Gary Baum, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Nov. 2023

The financing from Zac’s family for the Lisbon deal never came through, and the project ultimately foundered. —Patrick Radden Keefe, The New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2024

Stigma around periods has limited research on the impact of period poverty, and national policies seeking to improve access to menstrual products have foundered. —Jitsiree Thongnoi, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English foundour, borrowed from Anglo-French fundur, foundour, going back to Latin fundātor, from fundāre "to found entry 4" + -tor, agent suffix

Verb

Middle English fondrer "to fall to the ground, stumble, sink," borrowed from Anglo-French fundrer "to destroy," probably back-formation from enfondrer, esfondrer, affondrer "to sink, send to the bottom," prefixed forms based on Old French -fondrer, going back to Vulgar Latin *-fundorāre, verbal derivative of Late Latin fundor-, variant stem of Latin fundus "bottom, base" — more at bottom entry 1

Note: The simple verb fundrer (as opposed to prefixed forms) is marginally attested in Anglo-French, its senses partially merged with fondre going back to Latin fundere (see found entry 5), which in addition to its basic meanings "to pour, cast" had already in Classical Latin the extended meanings "to scatter, disperse, rout" and "to lay low, slay."

Noun (2)

derivative of founder entry 2

Noun (3)

Middle English foundour, borrowed from Anglo-French foundur, foundour, from fondre "to melt, cast, found entry 5" + -ur, -our -er entry 2

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (2)

circa 1547, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing founder

• founder effect
• co-founder

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Kids Definition

founder

1 of 3 noun

found·​er ˈfau̇n-dər 

: one that founds or establishes

founder

2 of 3 verb

foun·​der ˈfau̇n-dər 

foundered; foundering -d(ə-)riŋ 

1

: to become lame

the horse foundered

2

: to sink below the surface of the water

a foundering ship

founder

3 of 3 noun

found·​er

: one that founds metal

Etymology

Verb

Middle English foundren "to fall to the ground, sink," from early French fondrer (same meaning), derived from Latin fundere "to pour, cast, disperse, lay low" — related to font entry 2, found entry 3

Medical Definition

founder

1 of 2 verb

foun·​der ˈfau̇n-dər 

foundered; foundering -d(ə-)riŋ  ; founders

intransitive verb

of a horse

: to become disabled

especially : to go lame

transitive verb

: to disable (a domesticated animal, such as a horse or cow), especially as a result of excessive feeding or poor nutrition : to cause laminitis in

founder

2 of 2 noun

foun·​der

: inflammation of and damage to the laminae (see lamina sense b) and coffin bone in the hoof of a domesticated animal (such as a horse or cow) that is typically caused by poor diet, obesity, or diseases associated with inflammation : laminitis

Legal Definition

founder

noun

found·​er

: one that founds or establishes: as

a

: one that establishes a foundation

b

: founding father