found

found — verb

1. the form of the verb "find" that shows a past action — used when you discovered

1.verbtransitive / intransitiveA1
Definition

the form of the verb "find" that shows a past action — used when you discovered something after searching, or when you became aware of something at an earlier time.

Example

Nellie found her keys under a pile of books on the desk.

Asher found the biology course much harder than he expected.

found + object + adjective complement

Common collocations
  • found + object + location
  • found + object + adjective
  • found dead / found injured
  • found guilty / found not guilty (legal context)
Synonyms
  • discovered

    covers concrete objects and abstract truths

  • came across

    less formal, implies chance rather than search

  • located

    more formal, often after deliberate searching

Antonyms
  • lost

    opposite of finding something

  • misplaced

    temporarily lost or put in the wrong spot

Grammar Patterns

found + noun phrase (object discovered)

found + noun phrase + adjective (to discover something is a certain way)

be found + location

Usage Note

To distinguish this from the "establish" meaning of "found": if the sentence still makes sense when you replace "found" with "discovered", it is the past tense of "find". This is by far the most frequent use of the word "found" in everyday English.

Common Mistakes

I found a company in 2015' (meaning 'I started a company').
I founded a company in 2015.
'Found' as the past of 'find' means 'discovered', not 'established'. The verb for starting an organisation is a different word spelled the same way.
The school was found in 1990.
The school was founded in 1990.
When you mean 'established' (passive), use 'founded', not the past participle of 'find'.

2. to create a new organisation, institution, city, or company by providing the ini

2.verbtransitiveB1
Definition

to create a new organisation, institution, city, or company by providing the initial money, planning, or resources needed for it to begin and continue.

Example

Hassan founded a small school in his village with help from local parents.

The charity was founded by a group of retired nurses in 2010.

passive: be founded + by [agent] + [time]

Common collocations
  • found a company / organisation / institution
  • found a city / colony / settlement
  • found a school / university / college
  • found a charity / foundation
  • founded in [year]
  • founded by [person/group]
Synonyms
  • establish

    very close in meaning; 'establish' is slightly broader and can apply to systems or relationships

  • set up

    less formal, used for both permanent and temporary arrangements

  • create

    wider in scope — can apply to ideas, art, or objects

  • institute

    more formal, often used for official systems, rules, or procedures

Antonyms
  • dissolve

    to officially close an organisation

  • abolish

    to put an end to a system or institution by law

Grammar Patterns

found + organisation/institution/company

be founded + by + person/group

be founded + in + year/place

Usage Note

Frequently used in the passive pattern 'be founded [by somebody] [in year/place]'. The subject of the active verb is typically a person or group; the object is an institution, company, city, or permanent organisation. This sense is more formal than 'set up' but less formal than 'institute'.

Common Mistakes

The club founded in 2005.
The club was founded in 2005.
'Found' is transitive and needs a subject in active voice; you cannot leave out the object.
She founded a rumour that he was leaving.
She started a rumour that he was leaving.
'Found' is for permanent organisations, not for stories or short-term initiatives.

3. to place a large construction like a bridge or a building onto a solid ground ba

3.verbtransitiveC1
Definition

to place a large construction like a bridge or a building onto a solid ground base so that it remains stable and does not move or sink.

Example

The bridge was founded on thick concrete pillars that reach the bedrock.

passive: be founded on [material]

Engineers founded the dam on solid rock to prevent any movement.

Common collocations
  • founded on rock / bedrock / stone
  • founded on pillars / piles / concrete
  • founded on solid ground
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

be founded on + material/ground

found + structure + on/upon + base

Usage Note

Almost always used in the passive. The object is a large civil-engineering structure. This sense is the least common of the verb senses and appears mainly in technical or historical descriptions of construction methods — in everyday English, speakers usually say 'built on' instead.

Common Mistakes

They founded the house in 2020.
They built the house in 2020.
'Found' in this sense is only used for large structures that need ground preparation, not for ordinary houses.

4. to use a particular fact, idea, or piece of information as the main support for

4.verbtransitiveB2
Definition

to use a particular fact, idea, or piece of information as the main support for a belief, opinion, theory, argument, or decision — for example, founding a political view on personal experience, or a scientific theory on experimental data.

Example

Dahlia founded her argument on data from three separate studies.

found + [abstract noun] + on + [evidence]

The film is founded on a true story that took place in the 1920s.

Common collocations
  • founded on fact / evidence / research
  • founded on trust / respect / experience
  • founded on a principle / belief / idea
  • well-founded (adjective meaning well-supported)
  • unfounded (adjective meaning not based on fact)
Synonyms
  • based on

    everyday equivalent; less formal and more common in speech

  • grounded in

    suggests a deeper, more thorough basis

  • rooted in

    implies that the basis comes from long-standing sources

Antonyms
  • unsupported

    lacking a basis in fact or evidence

  • unfounded

    not based on fact or reason (the opposite adjective)

Grammar Patterns

be founded on/upon + noun phrase (basis)

found + abstract noun + on/upon + noun phrase

Usage Note

Almost always followed by 'on' or 'upon'. The object of the verb is typically abstract — a belief, claim, theory, opinion, argument, or relationship. The passive form is more common than the active. In everyday English, 'based on' is used instead; 'founded on' is more formal and feels more emphatic.

Common Mistakes

The belief is found on centuries of tradition.
The belief is founded on centuries of tradition.
The past participle of the 'base on' meaning is 'founded', not 'found'. This is the most frequent spelling error with this sense.
He founded his company on customer service.' — This mixes sense 2 (establish) and sense 4 (base on).
He founded his company with a focus on customer service.' or 'He built his company's reputation on customer service.

found — noun

Word family

  • founder
    nounB2
  • foundation
    nounB1
  • founding
    adjectiveB2
  • unfounded
    adjectiveC1
  • well-founded
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/2

These words all describe bringing something new into existence, but they differ in formality and scope. "Found" is specifically about permanent institutions or organisations that require initial investment and planning — you found a university, a company, or a city. "Establish" is the closest synonym and can often replace "found," but it is broader: you can also establish a reputation, a rule, or a relationship, which "found" cannot do. "Set up" is the informal everyday alternative, suitable for both permanent and temporary arrangements — you set up a tent, a meeting, or a small business. "Create" is the widest in scope, applying to anything new: ideas, art, problems, or organisations. "Institute" is the most formal, typically used for official systems, rules, or procedures — a government institutes a policy. "Launch" adds the idea of a public or dramatic beginning, such as launching a product or a campaign. For example: a group might found a school (provide the initial resources), establish its curriculum (develop the system over time), set up its classrooms (arrange the space), and launch its first open day (announce it to the public).

establish ↗set up ↗create ↗institute ↗launch ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • and found

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word "found" in the meaning "establish" or "base upon" comes from Old French fonder (13th century), from Latin fundare "to lay the bottom of something," from fundus "bottom, foundation." The word "found" as the past tense of "find" comes from a completely different origin — Old English findan "to come upon, discover," whose past form fundon became "found" in Middle English. These two words are homographs: they happen to have the same spelling in modern English but are historically unrelated. The noun sense "free food and lodging" developed from the "establish" verb family, originally meaning "provisions" or "maintenance" — what is necessary to support life while someone works.