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Definition of excavate

excavate

/ˈɛkskəveɪt/
ex · ca · vate
Adjective:excavated
•
Past Simple:excavated
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Past Participle:excavated
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Present Participle:excavating
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excavate Lexical Profile

excavate Game Scores & Validity

• verb

1

To make a hole, channel, or cavity in the ground by digging out and removing earth or rock.

Example

"Engineers had to excavate a deep trench across the valley to lay the new water pipeline."

2

To carefully remove earth from an area in order to uncover buried archaeological remains, artifacts, or fossils.

Example

"A team of archaeologists spent three summers working to excavate the ancient Roman villa."

Synonyms
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Antonyms
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• Nearby Words

exasperatingly
exasperation
excalibur
excavate
excavation
excavator
exceed

Word Origin & Etymology

Borrowed in the late 16th century from Latin excavatus, the past participle of excavare ('to hollow out'), formed from ex- ('out') and cavus ('hollow', the source of English 'cave').

Cite this Entry

Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Excavate. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/excavate
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