1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

founded

verb

past tense of found
as in established
to be responsible for the creation and early operation or use of John Harvard did not actually found the university that now bears his name

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of founded Contour Circuits, founded by Secor and former graduate student Jeremy Rurup, received a $150,000 Small Business Technology Transfer contract to advance the technology. — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026 At Micam, curation takes place in sections like the Emerging Designer event area, founded in 2018. — Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 17 Sep. 2026 Arkhum Productions was founded by actor/producer Centineo and Marc in 2023. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2026 Neal Street Productions, a Banijay Entertainment company, was founded in 2003; its founders are Sam Mendes, Pippa Harris and Caro Newling. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026 When Karma Developers was founded in 2013, its founders began with a different question. — Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026 In recent years, Smith founded the nonprofit Serving the People and opened FOOD, a restaurant catering to artists. — Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026 Mavrookas co-founded Saronic in 2022, focusing on the development of autonomous maritime vehicles. — Preston Fore, Fortune, 10 Sep. 2026 An idea ahead of its time Porter founded Histoury less than three years ago, but the lightning bolt of inspiration originally struck him 15 years ago on a visit to Herculaneum, Porter tells Popular Science. — Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 3 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for founded
  1. established
  2. pioneered
  3. launched
  4. initiated
  5. introduced
  6. created
  7. instituted
Verb
  • This turns the tables on them, with one of crypto's biggest and most established companies working to appeal to wealthy investors who may want options with a range of strategies and asset classes.
    — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2026
  • What distinguished their negotiations was that Kissinger and Zhou each established a true intellectual appreciation for the other as a partner.
    — Orville Schell, Foreign Affairs, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of established
Verb
  • Robert Eagle, a co-author of the study and a geobiologist at University of California, Los Angeles, pioneered this approach to measuring prehistoric body temperatures.
    — Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The theft-prone models lack a critical safeguard called an engine immobilizer pioneered in the mid-1980s, when more than 60,000 cars a year were stolen in Los Angeles alone.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of pioneered
Verb
  • The State Department issued a caution warning to Americans in the Middle East on Saturday night after Houthi rebels in Yemen launched a ballistic missile at an airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital.
    — Carter Schroppe, The Washington Examiner, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Pukar, as well as Renegade Insurance CEO Rashik Adhikari, launched a relief drive, matching donations up to $20,000 to the government’s relief effort.
    — Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of launched
Verb
  • In April Bangladesh health officials initiated a large-scale measles vaccination campaign, targeting some 18 million children.
    — Lauren J. Young, Scientific American, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Instead, plaintiffs contend that the commission initiated the early renewal proceeding to retaliate against plaintiffs in violation of the First Amendment.
    — Ted Johnson, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of initiated
Verb
  • In the Bay Area, San Francisco supervisors introduced a proposal earlier this month to block data centers for 45 days while the city creates new codes.
    — Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Kane also introduced some new styles, like the asymmetrical axe bag in white leather, and the chop, a smaller, curved shoulder bag style, both centered on the idea of cutting away at a Mulberry tree to promote new growth, Kane explained backstage.
    — Lucy Maguire, Vogue, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of introduced
Verb
  • The delay again has created a potential cash crunch for districts during the wait for their cut — often a main revenue source for local governments — and added to the pile of complaints about the county’s decade-long property tax system upgrade.
    — A.D. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Bees take advantage of vegetation and openings in forest canopies created by disturbances such as disease, storms, wind, beavers and fire.
    — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of created
Verb
  • But the extent of the racist policies instituted by this administration in his second term is staggering.
    — Richard Davis, The Orlando Sentinel, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Joseph said the San Jose Police Department instituted new policies last week in response to the former officer's improper accessing of ALPR data.
    — Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of instituted

Browse Nearby Words

foundations
founded
founder
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Founded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/founded. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All