steam shovel

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noun

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

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Origin of steam shovel

An Americanism dating back to 1875–80

Words nearby steam shovel

steam reforming, steamroll, steamroller, steam room, steamship, steam shovel, steam table, steamtight, steam trap, steam turbine, steam up

How to use steam shovel in a sentence

In 2006, the firm presided over a routine steam-injection procedure known as “well stimulation.”
The Fiery Underground Oil Pit Eating L.A.|Geoff Manaugh|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But how is it they never lose that hunger to turn over the next shovel of dirt?
The Real-Life Raiders of the Lost Ark|Alex Belth|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Parenting a kid that can get from place to place under his own steam is a whole new ballgame.
Kids Eat the Darndest Things: Laundry Pods, Teething Necklaces, and More Of The Weirdest Stuff Sending Kids to the E.R.|Russell Saunders|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Moran also pointed out straight edges where a shovel had sliced into the earth.
Knowing Where the Bodies Are Buried: An Excerpt From 'Lives in Ruins'|Marilyn Johnson|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But as one deadly malady loses steam, another may be exploding: hunger.
Liberia’s Ebola Famine|Abby Haglage, Nina Strochlic|November 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A colossal steam "traveller" had ceaselessly carried great blocks of stone and long steel girders from point to point.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Two huge steam engines had snorted and puffed for three whole years.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
Greenlaw (Charles P.), his efforts in obtaining steam for India, 560.
Notes and Queries, Index to Eighth Volume, July-December 1853|Various
The steamboat of 1809 and the steam locomotive of 1830 were the direct result of what had gone before.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
The Comet started on her first trip up the Arkansas, being the first steam boat that ascended that river.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell

British Dictionary definitions for steam shovel

steam-shovel

noun

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

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