excavate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make hollow by removing the inner part; make a hole or cavity in; form into a hollow, as by digging.
The ground was excavated for a foundation.
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to make (a hole, tunnel, etc.) by removing material.
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to dig or scoop out (earth, sand, etc.).
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to expose or lay bare by or as if by digging; unearth.
to excavate an ancient city.
verb
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to remove (soil, earth, etc) by digging; dig out
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to make (a hole, cavity, or tunnel) in (solid matter) by hollowing or removing the centre or inner part
to excavate a tooth
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to unearth (buried objects) methodically in an attempt to discover information about the past
Other Word Forms
- excavation noun
- reexcavate verb (used with object)
- unexcavated adjective
Etymology
Origin of excavate
1590–1600; < Latin excavātus (past participle of excavāre to hollow out), equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + cav ( um ) hollow, cave + -ātus -ate 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Then, when identical brothers Smoke and Stack came calling, Jordan rented a house in Ojai and began excavating the twins’ backstories with help from longtime dialect coach Beth McGuire.
From Los Angeles Times
The latest search for Mr McVeigh's remains had been taking place at Bragan Bog in County Monaghan since August, after a review of previous operations identified a new area to be excavated.
From BBC
Reiner was, above all, a compassionate filmmaker, willing to excavate all manner of conflict and tension in search of the essential humanity that connects us all.
From Los Angeles Times
The Declaration’s audacious promise that all are created equal, a vow Mr. Amar excavates with the precision of an archaeologist and the flair of a storyteller.
The day after their funerals, miners including children are back at work, their hands sifting sand by the river or inspecting the earth manually excavated in search of the glimmer of gold.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
