What does "foundation" mean?
The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect.
Foundation
/faʊnˈdeɪʃən/ noun
noun ·Very common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect.
- Grammar: foundation is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: base, basis, groundwork, substructure.
- Useful contrasts: no ground, abolition, casualness.
- Usage evidence: It is foolish of you to build a castle in the air while forgetting to drive in pilings for its foundation.
How to use "foundation"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "foundation" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "foundation" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "foundation" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "foundation" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "foundation" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "base" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "foundation", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect. countable, uncountable
"The foundation of his institute has been wrought with difficulty."
- 2 the act of starting something for the first time; introducing something new wordnet
- 3 That upon which anything is founded; that on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the lowest and supporting layer of a superstructure; underbuilding. countable, uncountable
"Aye Madam to be sure that is the Provoking circumstance—without Foundation—yes yes—there's the mortification indeed—for when a slanderous story is believed against one—there certainly is no comfort like the consciousness of having deserved it——"
- 4 lowest support of a structure wordnet
- 5 The result of the work to begin something; that which stabilizes and allows an enterprise or system to develop. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"The implication is that the Gandhian model of growth is possible, now that Nehru's investment strategy had already laid a strong foundation for economic growth."
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 a woman's undergarment worn to give shape to the contours of the body wordnet
- 7 In solitaire or patience games, one of the piles of cards that the player attempts to build, usually holding all cards of a suit in ascending order. countable, uncountable
- 8 the fundamental assumptions from which something is begun or developed or calculated or explained wordnet
- 9 The lowest and supporting part or member of a wall, including the base course and footing courses; in a frame house, the whole substructure of masonry. countable, uncountable
"The foundations of this construction have been laid out."
- 10 education or instruction in the fundamentals of a field of knowledge wordnet
- 11 A donation or legacy appropriated to support a charitable institution, and constituting a permanent fund; endowment. countable, uncountable
- 12 an institution supported by an endowment wordnet
- 13 That which is founded, or established by endowment; an endowed institution or charity. countable, uncountable
"The Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. is the parent organization of the Wiktionary collaborative project."
- 14 the basis on which something is grounded wordnet
- 15 Cosmetic cream roughly skin-colored, designed to make the face appear uniform in color and texture. countable, uncountable
- 16 A basis for social bodies or intellectual disciplines. countable, uncountable
"Economics is a messy discipline: too fluid to be a science, too rigorous to be an art. Perhaps it is fitting that economists’ most-used metric, gross domestic product (GDP), is a tangle too.[…]But as a foundation for analysis it is highly subjective: it rests on difficult decisions about what counts as a territory, what counts as output and how to value it. Indeed, economists are still tweaking it."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"It is foolish of you to build a castle in the air while forgetting to drive in pilings for its foundation."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "foundation"?
Common synonyms include: base, basis, groundwork, substructure, a, a priori principle.
How do you use "foundation" in a sentence?
It is foolish of you to build a castle in the air while forgetting to drive in pilings for its foundation.
How do you pronounce "foundation"?
Pronounced /faʊnˈdeɪʃən/.
Etymology
From Middle English foundacioun, fundacioun, from Old French fondacion, from Latin fundātiō (“founding, foundation”).