{
    "term": "foundation",
    "partOfSpeech": "noun",
    "academic": true,
    "ox5000": true,
    "cefr": "b2",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "a principle, an idea or a fact that something is based on and that it grows from",
            "sensetop": "without foundation",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Respect and friendship provide a **solid foundation** for marriage."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He **laid the foundation** of Japan's modern economy."
                },
                {
                    "text": "These stories **have no foundation** *(= are not based on any facts)*."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The rumour is totally without foundation *(= is not based on any facts)*.",
                    "contextForm": "without foundation"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Worship is the foundation of all the Church's activities."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He believes terrorism undermines the very foundations of our society."
                },
                {
                    "text": "We now have a firm foundation to build on."
                },
                {
                    "text": "This agreement laid a sound foundation for future cooperation between the two countries."
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "verb + foundation": ["have no"],
                "preposition": ["without foundation"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "an organization that is established to provide money for a particular purpose, for example for scientific research or charity",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The money will go to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Many of the hospitals were originally established by religious foundations."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The research centre was set up by a charitable foundation."
                },
                {
                    "text": "a private foundation for sport and the arts"
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Social issues"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["charitable", "private", "research"],
                "verb + foundation": ["establish", "set up", "start"],
                "preposition": ["foundation for"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "the act of starting a new institution or organization",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The organization has grown enormously since its foundation in 1955."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She used the money to go towards the foundation of a special research group."
                }
            ],
            "synonyms": "establishment"
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 4,
            "definition": "a layer of stone, concrete, etc. that forms the solid underground base of a building",
            "cefr": "c1",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The builders are now beginning **to lay the foundations** of the new school."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The explosion shook the foundations of the houses nearby."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Concrete foundations have been laid."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The thunder seemed to shake the very foundations of the building."
                },
                {
                    "text": "They had dug too deep and undermined the foundations of the house."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Buildings"],
            "collocations": {
                "adjective": ["deep", "concrete"],
                "verb + foundations": ["dig", "lay", "shake"],
                "foundation + noun": ["stone", "wall"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 5,
            "definition": "a skin-coloured cream that is put on the face under other make-up",
            "cefr": "c2",
            "examples": [],
            "topics": ["Appearance"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to cause people to question their basic beliefs about something",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "This issue has shaken the foundations of French politics."
                },
                {
                    "text": "an event which rocked the foundations of British politics"
                },
                {
                    "text": "The scandal rocked the legal establishment to its foundations."
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/faʊnˈdeɪʃn/",
                "audio": "fo/foundation/foundation__gb_1.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/faʊnˈdeɪʃn/",
                "audio": "fo/foundation/foundation__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "late Middle English: from Old French fondation, from Latin fundatio(n-), from fundare ‘to lay a base for’, from fundus ‘bottom, base’."
}