Sink or swim

Add comment December 9th, 2008

A “flounder” is a type of flatfish. In fact, there are two families of flounder.

As a verb, like a fish out of water, to flounder is “to struggle awkwardly to move; plunge about in a stumbling manner,” or “to speak or act in an awkward, confused manner, with hesitation and frequent mistakes.”

Delete the “l” and you have the verb “founder,” which is “to become stuck; bog down” or “collapse; fail.” As an extreme example, a ship founders when it takes on water and sinks.

As long as the struggle continues, it’s floundering. When all is lost, it’s foundered.

As a noun, a founder can be “a person who founds, or casts, metals, glass, etc.” — think “foundry worker.”

The other type of “founder” is a person who establishes something, like one of the Founding Fathers.

Adding to the mix, “found” is the past tense and part participle of the verb “find.” Columbus might claim he found America. The writers of the Constitution founded America.