foundlings
Discovered abandoned babies
Foundlings are infants or young children who have been abandoned by their parents and discovered by others.
The term carries historical weight, evoking images of babies left on doorsteps or at the gates of foundling hospitals—institutions established specifically to care for such children.
The orphanage had taken in foundlings for over a century.
While the word sounds antiquated, it still appears in historical and literary contexts where abandoned children figure in the narrative.
Completely abandoned or discarded
- discardedGotten rid of
- unwantedNot wished for
- rejectedRefused or turned away
- cast-offDiscarded or abandoned item
left · deserted · relinquished · surrendered · exposed · doorstep · basket · swaddling
Unexpected event causing astonishment
- shockViolent sudden disturbance
- unexpectedNot anticipated beforehand
- startlingCausing sudden surprise
- doorstepEntrance's bottom ledge
church steps · discovered · happened upon · chance · fate · providence · miraculous · mysterious
Having no mother or father
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- lineageDescent from progenitors
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- kinshipState of being related
birthright · roots · belonging · search · reunion · birth parents · biological · records
Support growth and development
- fosterEncourage development of
- adoptionLegal family formation
- guardianshipLegal care of another
- custodyProtective care or control
protection · shelter · upbringing · orphanage · wet nurse · benefactor · ward · charge
forsaken
Completely abandoned or discarded
cast-off · left · deserted · relinquished · surrendered · exposed · doorstep · basket · swaddling · waifs
surprise
Unexpected event causing astonishment
- shockViolent sudden disturbance
- unexpectedNot anticipated beforehand
- startlingCausing sudden surprise
doorstep · church steps · discovered · happened upon · chance · fate · providence · miraculous · mysterious
parentless
Having no mother or father
kinship · birthright · roots · belonging · search · reunion · birth parents · biological · records · secrecy
nurture
Support growth and development
- fosterEncourage development of
- adoptionLegal family formation
- guardianshipLegal care of another
custody · protection · shelter · upbringing · orphanage · wet nurse · benefactor · ward · charge · rescue
innocent
Free from moral wrong
- vulnerableOpen to attack
- helplessUnable to act independently
- blamelessFree of wrongdoing
pure · defenseless · dependent · small · infant · newborn · baby · child · pitiable · sympathetic
- orphan careorphanages, orphans, foster care, foster homes, wards
- orphanagesorphanage, orphan, waif, wards, abandoned child
- Russian childhood literatureorphans, child protagonists, childhood, coming-of-age, street children
- Victorian childhoodstreet children, urchins, waifs, destitute children, orphanages
- vulnerable childrenorphans, foster kids, homeless youth, street children, neglected children
- girls fictionheroines, girl power, schoolgirls, princesses, coming-of-age
foundlingsnatural children
Children of unmarried parents
heirs · scions · legitimate heirs · offspring · progeny
- foundling homeShelter for abandoned children