Find, found, founded, founding, finding

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi,

  1. I know of found as the past tense and the past particple of find. I cannot work out why we have founded and founding as well. And in what sense can found and founding be used.

  2. (…Jehovah listened to Moses when he spoke in behalf of the wayward Isrealites). Would it be wrong for one to use on?

  3. Most religious traditions acknowledge that no one can speak authoritatively about divine will in natural disasters. Please what is the meaning of the boldened text.

  4. If fighting worsens, the troops might be reinforced, or ingloriously withdrawn.
    Why not withdraw instead. To me the whole construction is in the present so why withdrawn? Please help.

  5. I cannot understand the correct usage of brainstorm. One difinition says If you have a brainstorm , you suddenly become unable to think clearly. Another says If you have a brainstorm, you suddenly have a cleaver idea.
    So by what is said, if I should say:

  6. Yesterday I had a brainstorm.

By the above how would the listerner decipher to know whether I’m referring to the
first difinition or the second difinition. Please asisst.

1 Like
2

  1. “founded” and “founding” are from the verb “found”. This is completely unrelated to the verb “find”. It is purely coincidence that the past tense of “find” is also “found”. For the meanings of the verb “found” see any good dictionary.

  2. To me, “in behalf of” sounds wrong in any context. I believe it may be more prevalent in the US. This is a common question and there is a lot of discussion in various forums; search in behalf or on behalf on Google.

  3. “religious” and “tradition” have their usual dictionary meanings.

  4. “withdrawn” is passive: “the troops might be withdrawn”. “withdraw” would be ungrammatical here.

  5. See “brainstorming”. Apparently the “sudden clever idea” is US usage and the “unable to think clearly” meaning is UK usage. Perhaps the most common meaning nowadays is the middle one in that entry, “a spontaneous group discussion to produce ideas and ways of solving problems”. “I had a brainstorm” is not so likely in that meaning, but certainly if someone said “We had a brainstorm yesterday” I would by default assume that meaning.

1 Like
3

Hi, Dozy thanks, I have understood well! but one question.

Why “founding” is not a present progressive form of “found”. Normally I see “ing” being added to a verb to indicate the present progressive form, but I think this an exception to that.
It seems “founding” is considered as an “adjective” and a “noun” in any context.
Why?

1 Like
4

“founding” is the present participle of the verb “found”. It works in exactly the same way as any other present participle: it can be used to create a range of progressive tenses, it can be used adjectivally (e.g. “founding fathers”), and it can be used as a noun (e.g. “the founding of the hospital”).

1 Like
5

Hi, Dozy please see my examples with “founding”.

  1. When founding the organisation they encountered certain setbacks.
  2. We were there when they were founding the institution.
    Are they good?
6

Yes, they are correct.

1 Like
7

Thanks Dozy. God bless you.

1 Like