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View synonyms for excavate

excavate

[eks-kuh-veyt]

verb (used with object)

excavated, excavating 
  1. 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.

  2. to make (a hole, tunnel, etc.) by removing material.

  3. to dig or scoop out (earth, sand, etc.).

  4. to expose or lay bare by or as if by digging; unearth.

    to excavate an ancient city.



excavate

/ ˈɛkskəˌveɪt /

verb

  1. to remove (soil, earth, etc) by digging; dig out

  2. to make (a hole, cavity, or tunnel) in (solid matter) by hollowing or removing the centre or inner part

    to excavate a tooth

  3. to unearth (buried objects) methodically in an attempt to discover information about the past

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • reexcavate verb (used with object)
  • unexcavated adjective
  • excavation noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of excavate1

1590–1600; < Latin excavātus (past participle of excavāre to hollow out), equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + cav ( um ) hollow, cave + -ātus -ate 1
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Word History and Origins

Origin of excavate1

C16: from Latin excavāre, from cavāre to make hollow, from cavus hollow
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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.

Robert W. Fieseler is a journalist investigating marginalized groups and a scholar excavating forgotten histories.

Read more on Salon

He didn’t just co-write this tale of two estranged brothers excavating their complicated history — he imbues it with his essence, its reason for being.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Some may see his truth as a superficial one, but it’s a truth nonetheless, and it’s when he decides to excavate it onscreen that “Jay Kelly” rises above its more shallow, glitzy trappings.

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The skull was excavated along with two others from Hubei Province.

Read more on BBC

The Houston-based company also was charged with 16 misdemeanor violations of the state Fish and Game Code for allegedly putting excavated material into protected waterways and other offenses.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

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