foundling

Definition of foundlingnext

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 foundling The connection between the films goes far beyond the presence of a foundling. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2026 When Heathcliff, a foundling, discovers that Cathy Earnshaw, the daughter of the impoverished Yorkshire lord who’s taken him in, has played a prank on him by putting eggs in his beds to be crushed, the boy plunges his fingers into the slippery puddle of yolk and albumen left behind. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 9 Feb. 2026 Cathy might be as uninhibited as Heathcliff when roaming the outdoors, but a woman of her status can’t be allowed to marry a foundling, especially one who now works for her family as a servant. — David Sims, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2026 The idea for the Innocenti began in medieval times and required more than a century of plans, donations, and negotiations before the arrival of its first trovatello, foundling. — Literary Hub, 24 Nov. 2025 There were grim meetings with every male foundling who landed on the streets or showed up at city hospitals. — Mara Bovsun, New York Daily News, 3 May 2025 But Mufasa's welcome is no kinder than the reception Dickens doled out to the foundlings scattered throughout his novels. — Tom Gliatto, People.com, 20 Dec. 2024 Clementine seems a foundling in need of any stable influence, while in her spookily near-complete isolation (there’s no hint of contact with friends or family), Kelly-Anne could use a little basic humanizing. — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 6 Sep. 2024 The tiny foundling — so small the women could scoop it up by hand — means that there is at least one breeding pair in the area. — Freda Kreier, New York Times, 24 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foundling
Noun
  • Count on a lunchtime carving station, with a chef slicing everything from a giant roast beef haunch to whole suckling pig.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Sep. 2026
  • It’s known for traditional cuisine, especially its roasted suckling pig.
    — Nuno Gonçalo Correia, Travel + Leisure, 3 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • The punishment came more than two years after Kansas City police found Thomas' infant daughter dead with severe burns inside a city home.
    — Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Big Psi for rebel exoplanet Planets form from disks of gas and dust that surround infant stars.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 22 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Owls, bats and dragons drawn from Chinese mythology seem suspended inside transparent spheres, while cherub-like children run in circles.
    — Anthony DeMarco, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • Gordon is cherub-faced, with low affect, speaks in a laconic and analytic style, and has a wry and elusive smile.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 July 2026
Noun
  • But many also can’t afford the childcare rates for newborns, which tend to be particularly high.
    — Megan Kuykendoll, The Conversation, 28 Sep. 2026
  • In Riverside County, newborns can be surrendered at most hospitals and fire stations.
    — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Meanwhile, local Church leaders hope the pope's visit will repair the Church's standing after a crushing 2021 report found that some 330,000 French children had been abused by Catholic clergy and lay leaders over seven decades.
    — Joshua McElwee, Arkansas Online, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Recently, the Illinois Department of Public Health released its new immunization guidance for children and adults heading into the fall respiratory virus season and school year.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 26 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Males guard the eggs and newborn frogs, called neonates.
    — Ana V. Longo, The Conversation, 24 June 2026
  • There have been publications about nicotine transmission and neonates after blood transfusion.
    — Torie Bosch, STAT, 1 June 2026
Noun
  • The beach is right there for swimming and paddleboarding when the surf is calm, and the trails through the dunes are manageable for kids old enough to walk them without being carried.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Sep. 2026
  • As a kid, his mother would drop him off at Southwick Country Club in Massachusetts on summer mornings on her way to work.
    — Kels Dayton, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • In February 2025, Timpf welcomed her first child, a baby boy.
    — Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Lipnicki plays a character known only by the screen name of Crazyfrog73, someone who gets caught in a compromising position in the kitchen while hoping to hook up with a boy played by Gisondo.
    — Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 26 Sep. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Foundling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foundling. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster