dig out
Idioms-
Extract, remove, as in He was determined to dig out every bit of metal he could find . [Late 1300s]
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Find by searching for, as in He dug out his first contract from the file . [Mid-1800s]
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.
A distinguishing feature is that on each hand, the possum's fourth finger is twice the length of other digits, which scientists say help it dig out wood-boring insect larvae, it's main source of food.
From BBC • Mar. 6, 2026
Driven by poverty and unemployment, the zama zamas -- which means "those who try" in the Zulu language -- descend deep into still gold-bearing shafts abandoned by mining companies or dig out new ones.
From Barron's • Jan. 23, 2026
The plan behind the $2.7 billion merger was to create a luxury juggernaut, while cost savings from the deal were expected to help Saks dig out of a deepening hole of delayed payments to suppliers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 14, 2026
On Sunday afternoon, Guenther was among a volunteer crew helping to dig out mud from an older woman’s home.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 28, 2025
“We’ll dig out and try once more with the brush,” I said.
From "A Farewell To Arms" by Ernest Hemingway
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.
