found

1 of 2

verb (1)

founded; founding; founds

transitive verb

1

: to take the first steps in building

2

: to set or ground on something solid : base

3

: to establish (something) often with provision for future maintenance

found an institution

found

2 of 2

verb (2)

founded; founding; founds

transitive verb

: to melt (a material, such as metal) and pour into a mold

Synonyms of found

Verb (1)

• establish
• pioneer
• introduce
• create
• initiate
• launch

Examples of found in a Sentence

Verb (1)

John Harvard did not actually found the university that now bears his name

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Jean, an activist who also founded the Black Trans Liberation organization, joined a growing group of trans and gender-nonconforming actors who have been nominated for Tonys. —Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 8 June 2026

It was founded in the wake of 9/11 as a way to bring people back to lower Manhattan, but has since grown and expanded to have events in all of the city’s boroughs. —Brent Lang, Variety, 7 June 2026

Originally founded as a paper mill company in 1872, Kimberly-Clark now owns a host of brands like Kleenex, Huggies and Cottonelle. —Amelia Lucas,melissa Repko, CNBC, 7 June 2026

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. —Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 7 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English founden, borrowed from Anglo-French fonder, funder, going back to Latin fundāre, derivative of fundus "bottom, base, foundation" — more at bottom entry 1

Verb (2)

borrowed from Middle French fondre "to melt, cast," going back to Old French, going back to Latin fundere "to pour, shed, cast, send forth, disperse," going back to Indo-European *ǵ^hu-n-d-, present tense derivative of *ǵ^heu̯d- "pour" (also Germanic, in Old English gēotan "to pour, shed," Old High German giozan, Old Norse gjóta "to drop, throw, give birth [of animals]," Gothic giutan "to pour"), extended form of Indo-European *ǵ^heu̯- "pour," whence Greek chéō, cheîn "to pour, shed," Tocharian B kewu "I will pour," Sanskrit juhoti "(s/he) pours, sacrifices"

First Known Use

Verb (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1562, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing found

• co-found
• found object
• found poem
• found wanting
• is nowhere to be found
• lost and found
• nowhere to be found
• well-found

Rhymes for found

• bound
• browned
• crowned
• downed
• drowned
• frowned
• gowned
• ground
• hound
• mound
• round
• sound

Kids Definition

found

1 of 3

ˈfau̇nd 

past and past participle of find

found

2 of 3 verb

: establish sense 3a

found a town

founded the company in 1847

found

3 of 3 verb

: to melt (metal) and pour into a mold

Etymology

Verb

Middle English founden "found, establish," from early French funder (same meaning), from Latin fundare (same meaning), from fundus "bottom, base" — related to fund, fundamental

Verb

from early French fondre "to pour, melt," from Latin fundere (same meaning) — related to font entry 2, founder entry 2

Legal Definition

found

1 of 2

past and past participle of find

found

2 of 2 transitive verb

: to establish (as an institution) often with provision for future maintenance