steam shovel

American  

noun

1. a machine for digging or excavating, operated by its own engine and boiler.

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steam-shovel British  

noun

1. a steam-driven mechanical excavator, esp one having a large bucket or grab on a beam slung from a revolving jib

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Etymology

Origin of steam shovel

An Americanism dating back to 1875–80

Example Sentences

Under siege since the settlers arrived with their draglines and steam shovels and suction-pump dredges, the threats to the southern residents’ home waters have metastasized.

From Seattle Times

But his “aggressively belligerent characteristic” stuck with him after leaving the steam shovels in the Panama Canal, and he ended up in “almost constant controversies,” according to the obituary.

From Washington Times

Developers in the 1950s removed an undocumented number of remains by steam shovel, under the passive eyes of D.C. health inspectors.

From Washington Post

Many more intimate subjects — like polluting steam shovels and spraying water cannons — are also readily found in several of the photographs.

From Seattle Times

More fundamentally, automation of one sort or another has been happening for centuries — machine tools, steam shovels, word processors, street sweepers, and plenty of other machines are just forms of automation.

From Los Angeles Times