foundation

foundation

synonyms, antonyms, definitions, examples & translations of foundation in English

English Online Dictionary. What means foundation‎? What does foundation mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle English foundacioun, fundacioun, from Old French fondacion, from Latin fundātiō (founding, foundation).

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /faʊnˈdeɪʃən/, [faʊ̯nˈdeɪ̯ʃn̩]
  • Rhymes: -eɪʃən

Noun

foundation (countable and uncountable, plural foundations)

  1. The act of founding, fixing, establishing, or beginning to erect.
    Synonym: establishment
    Antonyms: abolition, dissolution, ruination
  2. 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.
    Synonyms: basis, groundwork, underbuilding, underframework
  3. (figurative) The result of the work to begin something; that which stabilizes and allows an enterprise or system to develop.
    Synonyms: groundwork, platform, stage
  4. (card games) 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.
  5. (architecture) 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.
    Synonyms: base, groundwall
  6. A donation or legacy appropriated to support a charitable institution, and constituting a permanent fund; endowment.
  7. That which is founded, or established by endowment; an endowed institution or charity.
  8. (cosmetics) Cosmetic cream roughly skin-colored, designed to make the face appear uniform in color and texture.
  9. A basis for social bodies or intellectual disciplines.

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

  • foundation on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

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License

This article based on an article on Wiktionary. The list of authors can be seen in the page history there. The original work has been modified. This article is distributed under the terms of this license.