Serving as or relating to a foundation; forming the basic underlying principle or structure on which something is built.
From 'foundation' (from Latin 'fundatio,' from 'fundare' meaning 'to found' or 'to base') plus the adjective suffix '-al.' The word emerged in English around the 17th century.
The word 'foundational' is relatively new in academic writing—before the 1990s, people would have said 'basic' or 'fundamental,' but 'foundational' became trendy because it explicitly references the metaphor of building upon solid ground.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.