Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “found” come from?

Found derives from Middle English founden, from Old French fondre, from Latin fundo meaning to pour or melt, ultimately from Latin fundus and Proto-Indo-European ǵʰew-.

found (English): simple past tense and past participle of find;...

Definitions

  1. simple past tense and past participle of find;...

Ancestry of “found”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishfounden—
2Old Frenchfondreto melt
3Latinfunderesecond-person singular present passive...
4LatinfundoI pour out, shed; I rout, scatter; I found, make...
5Latinfundusbottom; farm; piece of land; estate; ground
6Proto-Indo-Europeanbʰudʰmḗnbottom
7Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewbʰ-deep
8Proto-Indo-Europeandʰewh₂-smoke; mist, haze

Words derived from “found”

  • founding
  • newfound
  • unfound
  • refound
  • foundest
  • cofound
  • typefounding
  • refounder
  • brassfounding
  • bellfounding
  • bronzefounding
  • foundable
  • yfound
Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- →