exhume

[ ig-zoom, -zyoom, eks-hyoom ]

/ ɪgˈzum, -ˈzyum, ɛksˈhyum /

verb (used with object), ex·humed, ex·hum·ing.

to dig (something buried, especially a dead body) out of the earth; disinter.

to revive or restore after neglect or a period of forgetting; bring to light: to exhume a literary reputation; to exhume old letters.

Nearby words

exhilaration, exhilarative, exhort, exhortation, exhortative, exhume, exigeant, exigency, exigent, exigently, exigible

Origin of exhume

1400–50; late Middle English < Medieval Latin exhumāre, equivalent to Latin ex- ex-¹ + humāre to inter

Related forms

ex·hu·ma·tion

[eks-hyoo-mey-shuh n] /ˌɛks hyʊˈmeɪ ʃən/, nounex·hum·er, nounun·ex·humed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for exhumation

There are plenty more candidates for exhumation, too, if we fancy it.
Scientists Exhume the Heart of Richard the Lionheart|Dan Jones|March 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The Vatican agreed last month to finally settle the issue by granting the Italian police permission for the exhumation.
Italian Police Open a Mobster’s Vatican-Owned Tomb in Search of a Missing Girl|Barbie Latza Nadeau|May 16, 2012|DAILY BEAST
His remains were buried in a family plot in Bavaria until their exhumation Wednesday.
Neo-Nazi Hero Taken From Grave|Eve Conant|July 22, 2011|DAILY BEAST
That was before an exhumation team found his mother's remains and was finally able to identify them just this past summer.
Survivor of the Genocide|Lauren Comiteau|March 5, 2010|DAILY BEAST

However, there had been comedy and absurdity also, perhaps rather more fit for exhumation now than those deeper moments.
Sinister Street, vol. 2|Compton Mackenzie
In 1793, at the exhumation of the bodies buried at the Abbey of St. Denis, rings were found in several of the royal tombs.
Finger-Ring Lore|William Jones
The question of the exhumation of the body appears to be involved in legal technicalities as to the ownership of the vault.
The Portland Peerage Romance|Charles J. Archard
She—and I—only heard of the exhumation several days after it had taken place.
My Memoirs|Marguerite Steinheil
A hard task, this exhumation by dint of the blows of a cleft and palpitating head.
The Life of the Fly|J. Henri Fabre

British Dictionary definitions for exhumation

exhume

/ (ɛksˈhjuːm) /

verb (tr)

to dig up (something buried, esp a corpse); disinter

to reveal; disclose; unearthdon't exhume that old argument

Derived Forms

exhumation (ˌɛkshjʊˈmeɪʃən), nounexhumer, noun

Word Origin for exhume

C18: from Medieval Latin exhumāre, from Latin ex- 1 + humāre to bury, from humus the ground

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