Because flounder and founder sound somewhat alike, some people confuse and misuse these words. Others mistakenly believe that these verbs are synonyms.
Solution
If you think your readers might misinterpret your message, you need to choose a less ambiguous synonym. Here are the most common meanings for the verbs flounder and founder.
most common meanings for the verbs flounder and founder
USE FLOUNDER IF YOU MEAN
USE FOUNDER IF YOU MEAN
to thrash about
to struggle
to have trouble with
to move clumsily or awkwardly
to sink
to break down; to collapse
to fail
to go lame
Examples
The sentences below show you how to use the verbs flounder and founder.
most common meanings for the verbs flounder and founder
FLOUNDER
FOUNDER
The sailboat floundered about (thrashed about) in the high seas, but did not founder.
Note: The verb flounder is often followed by the preposition about.
At first, the students will likely flounder (struggle) in a sea of grammatical rules.
The board of directors did not flounder on (have trouble with) the issue of financial incentives.
Because his snowshoes were too big, Jay floundered (moved awkwardly) in the deep snow.
Many ships have foundered (sunk) near Sable Island.
Negotiations between the union and the employer are likely to founder (break down, collapse) once again.
The project finally foundered (failed) and was never revived.
The horse favoured to win the race foundered (went lame, collapsed) at the finish line.
Linguistic Recommendation reference number
REM-13/2009-04
Note: The Internet is a public forum and electronic information can be intercepted. This is not a secure Web site. Please do not disclose unnecessary confidential information about yourself or your accounts with PWGSC.
