archaeological
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of archaeological
1775–85; < Greek archaiologik ( ós ) ( see archaeology, -ic) + -al 1
Explanation
An old house that has sat abandoned for hundreds of years isn’t just creepy — it’s archaeological! This is because its remains offer a treasure trove of details about the past and the lives of those who once called it home. The term archaeological describes anything connected to the field of archaeology, which is the study of human history and the past. Archaeological digs and findings help piece together human history like a giant jigsaw puzzle. Objects can include anything from pottery shards to old bones, adding a piece to the story of human life on Earth. It’s like time traveling through objects, where every discovery teaches us something new about our ancestors.
Vocabulary lists containing archaeological
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.
Instead, genetic studies of archaeological remains from Europe and the Americas have uncovered evidence of multiple treponemal diseases in ancient populations, emphasizing how complex the evolutionary history of these pathogens may be.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 12, 2026
The chance discovery led to one of the greatest archaeological finds in modern history, and the artifacts from Sanxingdui stirred questions that still perplex experts four decades later.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
Marco Carrino, a tour guide in Naples, warns against visiting open archaeological sites during the hottest hours of the day.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
The aircraft had been flying over Nazca Lines archaeological site when it went down on Saturday.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
Meanwhile, paleontologists learned that about two-thirds of the species that vanished did so a little before Clovis appears in the archaeological record.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
