archaeologist

American  

[ahr-kee-ol-uh-jist] / ˌɑr kiˈɒl ə dʒɪst /

Or archeologist

noun

1. a specialist in archaeology, the scientific study of prehistoric peoples and their cultures by analysis of their artifacts, inscriptions, monuments, etc.

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Etymology

Origin of archaeologist

archaeolog(y) + -ist

Explanation

An archaeologist is a scientist who studies human history by digging up human remains and artifacts. Lucy, the oldest human known to man — nearly 3.2 million years old — was dug up in Ethiopia by archaeologist. We know about the history of the human species thanks to archaeologists who spend countless hours sifting through dirt and digging through ruins to find evidence of human life from across time. The word archaeologist can also be spelled archeologist. It comes from the Greek root archaeo-, for "ancient, primitive."

Example Sentences

Coerte Voorhees had tapped Kilmer, who died of pneumonia last year after years of battling throat cancer, for "As Deep as the Grave," about the pioneering archaeologist Ann Morris, a co-discoverer of the Anasazi civilization.

From Barron's • Mar. 18, 2026

An international team that includes University of Arkansas archaeologist Taylor Hermes identified the first evidence of Bronze Age plague in a nonhuman host.

From Science Daily • Mar. 7, 2026

The actor recently reprised his iconic role as a swashbuckling archaeologist in the 2023 sequel “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 1, 2026

But many centuries later, King Tut’s tomb was discovered by the British archaeologist Howard Carter in this astonishing story as recounted by H.V.F.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026

Then, as fortune would have it, in May 1902 a museum worker brought it to the attention of archaeologist Valerios Stais, a nephew of Spyridon Stais.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Related Words

• paleontologist