Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun foundation

7 senses of foundation

Sense 1
foundation -- (the basis on which something is grounded; "there is little foundation for his objections")
       => relation -- (an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of two entities or parts together)

Sense 2
foundation -- (an institution supported by an endowment)
       => financial institution, financial organization, financial organisation -- (an institution (public or private) that collects funds (from the public or other institutions) and invests them in financial assets)

Sense 3
foundation, base, fundament, foot, groundwork, substructure, understructure -- (lowest support of a structure; "it was built on a base of solid rock"; "he stood at the foot of the tower")
       => support -- (supporting structure that holds up or provides a foundation; "the statue stood on a marble support")

Sense 4
foundation, grounding -- (education or instruction in the fundamentals of a field of knowledge; "he lacks the foundation necessary for advanced study"; "a good grounding in mathematics")
       => education -- (knowledge acquired by learning and instruction; "it was clear that he had a very broad education")

Sense 5
basis, base, foundation, fundament, groundwork, cornerstone -- (the fundamental assumptions from which something is begun or developed or calculated or explained; "the whole argument rested on a basis of conjecture")
       => assumption, supposition, supposal -- (a hypothesis that is taken for granted; "any society is built upon certain assumptions")

Sense 6
foundation garment, foundation -- (a woman's undergarment worn to give shape to the contours of the body)
       => undergarment, unmentionable -- (a garment worn under other garments)

Sense 7
initiation, founding, foundation, institution, origination, creation, innovation, introduction, instauration -- (the act of starting something for the first time; introducing something new; "she looked forward to her initiation as an adult"; "the foundation of a new scientific society")
       => beginning, start, commencement -- (the act of starting something; "he was responsible for the beginning of negotiations")