as in founder
a person who establishes a whole new field of endeavor
Theodor Herzl is often credited as the founding father of modern Zionism
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Recent Examples of founding father
The epicenter of it all is the manor, home to the town's founding father, John, and his wife, Ruth.
—
Kim Hudson, CBS News, 12 Mar. 2026
Our founding fathers experienced the heavy hand of a tyrannical government.
—Arkansas Online, 10 Mar. 2026
Evidence found in the DOJ files indicate that Epstein funded at least one other scientific conference, this one organized by Marvin Minsky, a mathematician considered to be a founding father of artificial intelligence.
—Scott Neuman, NPR, 9 Mar. 2026
What is rarely recounted is the key role played in that coup by two leading ayatollahs—Abol-Qasem Kashani and Mohammad Behbahani—who were heroes and mentors to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founding father of the Islamic Republic.
—Bobby Ghosh, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for founding father
Kim Hudson, CBS News, 12 Mar. 2026
Our founding fathers experienced the heavy hand of a tyrannical government.
—Arkansas Online, 10 Mar. 2026
Evidence found in the DOJ files indicate that Epstein funded at least one other scientific conference, this one organized by Marvin Minsky, a mathematician considered to be a founding father of artificial intelligence.
—Scott Neuman, NPR, 9 Mar. 2026
What is rarely recounted is the key role played in that coup by two leading ayatollahs—Abol-Qasem Kashani and Mohammad Behbahani—who were heroes and mentors to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founding father of the Islamic Republic.
—Bobby Ghosh, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for founding father
Recent Examples of Synonyms for founding father
Noun
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Watkins, founder of the YBMen Project which provides young Black men with a safe place to discuss their mental health, manhood and social support, said studies show that 10% of Black adults experience moderate to severe depression, while 18% experience anxiety disorders.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
21 Apr. 2026
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Physicist, engineer, and founder and CEO of Terraform Industries, a company scaling technology to produce cheap natural gas with sunlight and air with gigascale atmospheric hydrocarbon synthesis.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Beef Season 2 tackles everything from healthcare inequity to class dynamics and diaspora identity, and a majority of it was inspired by real-life events, creator Lee Sung Jin said.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
19 Apr. 2026
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More recently, Higher Ground has been setting up projects outside of Netflix, including the HBO sketch comedy series Life Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, from creator Larry David and Jeff Schaffer, which premieres in June.—
Kimberly Nordyke,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Word of Smith’s death had shattered his family, especially his father, who can’t believe his son is gone.—
Rocco Parascandola,
New York Daily News,
22 Apr. 2026
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Who cares about the fact that her friend cheated when her child was poisoned by her husband and her father?—
Arushi Jacob,
Variety,
22 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Founding father.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/founding%20father. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.
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