dig
verb (used without object)
to break up, turn over, or remove earth, sand, etc., as with a shovel, spade, bulldozer, or claw; make an excavation.
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dig
1 American
[dig]
/ dɪg /
verb (used without object)
dug,
digged,
digging
-
to break up, turn over, or remove earth, sand, etc., as with a shovel, spade, bulldozer, or claw; make an excavation.
-
to make one's way or work by or as by removing or turning over material.
to dig through the files.
verb (used with object)
dug,
digged,
digging
-
to break up, turn over, or loosen (earth, sand, etc.), as with a shovel, spade, or bulldozer (often followed byup ).
-
to form or excavate (a hole, tunnel, etc.) by removing material.
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to unearth, obtain, or remove by digging (often followed by up orout ).
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to find or discover by effort or search.
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to poke, thrust, or force (usually followed by in orinto ).
He dug his heel into the ground.
noun
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digs
plural
verb phrase
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dig up
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to discover in the course of digging.
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to locate; find.
to dig up information.
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-
dig into to attack, work, or apply oneself voraciously, vigorously, or energetically: to dig into a meal.
to dig into one's work;
to dig into a meal.
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dig in
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to dig trenches, as in order to defend a position in battle.
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to maintain one's opinion or position.
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to start eating.
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-
dig out
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to remove earth or debris from by digging.
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to hollow out by digging.
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to find by searching.
to dig out facts for a term paper.
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dig
2
American
[dig]
/ dɪg /
verb (used with object)
Slang.
dug,
digging
-
to understand.
Can you dig what I'm saying?
-
to take notice of.
Dig those shoes he's wearing.
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to like, love, or enjoy.
She digs that kind of music. We really dig each other.
dig.
3
American
abbreviation
dig
1
British
/ dɪɡ /
verb
-
to cut into, break up, and turn over or remove (earth, soil, etc), esp with a spade
-
to form or excavate (a hole, tunnel, passage, etc) by digging, usually with an implement or (of animals) with feet, claws, etc
to dig a tunnel
-
(often foll by through) to make or force (one's way), esp by removing obstructions
he dug his way through the crowd
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(tr; often foll by out or up) to obtain by digging
to dig potatoes
to dig up treasure
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(tr; often foll by out or up) to find or discover by effort or searching
to dig out unexpected facts
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(tr; foll by in or into) to thrust or jab (a sharp instrument, weapon, etc); poke
he dug his spurs into the horse's side
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(tr; foll by in or into) to mix (compost, etc) with soil by digging
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informal (tr) to like, understand, or appreciate
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slang (intr) to work hard, esp for an examination
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informal (intr) to have lodgings
I dig in South London
noun
-
the act of digging
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a thrust or poke, esp in the ribs
-
a cutting or sarcastic remark
-
informal an archaeological excavation
Dig
2
British
/ dɪɡ /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dig1
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English diggen, deggen; perhaps from Middle French diguer “to dig,” from the same Germanic source as ditch ( def. )
Origin of dig2
First recorded in 1935–40; origin uncertain; perhaps the same as dig 1 ( def. )
Explanation
When you dig, you scoop or shovel up dirt, sand, or some other material. Your dog might whine to go outside so she can dig a hole in your dad's garden. You can dig with your hands, a shovel, or even a tractor or backhoe. City crews dig up roads to repair water pipes, and gardeners dig small for planting bulbs. You can even say you dig your brother in the side when you jab him there. If someone says, "I dig you," they mean, "I understand," and if they say, "I dig your outfit," they like it. Both slang usages come from 1930s African American English.
Vocabulary lists containing dig
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.
See Examples For:
Or Root, who had to rummage around his garage to dig out his old captain's blazer.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
This week we also dig into how the AI doomsday debate has suddenly gotten very real, the benefits and limitations of sleep trackers and a custom home for under $1 million.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
Looking ahead, higher fuel costs could make shoppers dig deeper, said Phil Lempert, editor of SupermarketGuru.com.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
A sellout crowd of 54,283 at Memorial Stadium watched them dig in and find enough answers against coach Tosh Lupoi’s Golden Bears.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
I reached into the thatch, feeling the thick straw dig into my skin and under one of my nails.
From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff
"There were some other amazing finds on the dig. It was a field of dreams."
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2023
“That’s fine. I can dig. Wouldn’t trust anyone under 30 who didn’t poke at his or her or their elders. But it doesn’t mean that I or we have got to oblige.”
From New York Times ● Feb. 19, 2020
“We dig, dig, dig. We call it the stone way, the way of stones.”
From The Guardian ● Sep. 17, 2019
When Hope asks him if he’s off by himself looking for gold, he answers: “No. I just like to dig. I used to live in a hole.”
From Washington Post ● Apr. 15, 2016
“He says if we want to eat, we must dig. Our ration depends on our progress.”
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
Perpendicular to that, there’s a lunchtime slop-bowl corridor, offering Just Salad, Dig, Cava, and Sweetgreen in one neat little row.
From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2026
“You can really see the impact she had on them,” said Kellie Jones, a scholar and independent curator who organized “Now Dig This!: Art and Black Los Angeles 1960-1980” at the Hammer Museum in 2011.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
Dig deeper: Palantir pioneered the hottest job in tech.
From MarketWatch ● May 4, 2026
In 1985, Nepal’s Dig Tsho lake, in the Everest region, burst after part of a hanging glacier fell into it, destroying houses and infrastructure below.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026
When Soheil passes me, he whispers, “Nice work. Dig in. It’s about to get real.”
From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed
She said current digs were "really construction projects" where workers had stumbled across historical treasures.
From Barron's ● Aug. 29, 2026
Just compare the girls’ cluttered digs with their pursuers’ sterile white suits.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Part tech incubator, part self-improvement retreat, it started at $1,500 a month for room and board, classes and beachside digs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
Roman walls in the area have been known about since the 1930s, but digs in recent years have led to new discoveries, including a Roman forum and a theatre.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Her words link together into a chain that digs its way under my skin, all the way to my heart.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
“It seemed like it digged the piece,” Aitken said, as wide-eyed and sincere as he is when talking about all of his work.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2024
But he that had received one went and digged in the earth and hid his lord's money.
From Time Magazine Archive
Then, as a double precaution against double voting, each digged his fingers in a pot of indelible ink and presented his forearm to let one square inch of hair be shaved off.
From Time Magazine Archive
Spade never digged a pit as murky, foul, treacherous as that which gapes for the spirit of a golfer who is off his form.
From Time Magazine Archive
Men were laboring with Mattocks & Axes & Picks & rustic Grubbing Hoes — & together they digged out & built up the Breastworks & Redoubts at the Eminence of the Hill.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
Ashby said the USA was "digging up and cleaning up these sites" and seeing PCB levels in the environment falling as a result.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Oppenheimer said that after spending hours digging into AI risks ahead of the panel, he had come away “absolutely terrified.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
There, two pesky reporters were digging into Watergate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Elsewhere along Wemmer Pan Road are cracks and sinkholes from underground blasting by irregular miners digging under the city for gold and other minerals.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
After a bit more digging, he and Detective Webster hoisted the discovery out of the pit.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
But when I dug into the details, I realized the AI ban goes too far.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Joy Wiltermuth dug into the mechanics behind the decline in bond prices and rising long-term rates and professional investors’ expectations for moves that Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh can make to calm the market.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
Days before a Times reporter visited Matson’s property, a pack of wild dogs dug under his fence and fatally mauled his only surviving adult ostrich, Bam Bam.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
Carey dug deeper and saw that the hit to his score had happened after a debt collector, Tate and Kirlin, reported a supposed long-overdue payment.
From Salon ● Sep. 1, 2026
Danny dug into his bag and retrieved the arrow keys from his lunch box.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
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.
