dig up
Idioms-
Search out, find, obtain, as in I'm sure I can dig up a few more supporters . [Mid-1800s]
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. Find derogatory information about someone or something. For example, The editor assigned him to dig up all the dirt on the candidates . The slangy use of the noun dirt for “embarrassing or scandalous information” dates from about 1840, but this metaphoric expression is a century newer.
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.
Dig up the biggest blankbook you own and get going.
From Time Magazine Archive
"With all ya got in ya, boys,/ Dig up Virginia, boys!" sings Ratcliffe, as his toadying manservant sculpts exotic animal topiary of the sort found at every Disney park.
From Time Magazine Archive
Dig up the truth about who dropped the parachutes.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
Dig up the vegetable garden, everything that was coming up, flatten it, and cover it with dead leaves.
From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien
"Bruce? It's Venkat. Everything just changed. Watney's headed for Pathfinder. Yeah! I know, right!? Dig up everyone who was on that project and get them to JPL now. I'll catch the next flight."
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
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.
