excavate
verb
ex·ca·vate
ˈek-skə-ˌvāt 
excavated; excavating
1
: to form a cavity or hole in
2
: to form by hollowing out
3
: to dig out and remove
4
: to expose to view by or as if by digging away a covering
excavate the remains of a temple
: to make excavations
Examples of excavate in a Sentence
They excavated an ancient city.
It is the first site to be excavated in this area.
They began excavating the backyard for their new pool.
The excess dirt was carefully excavated.
Recent Examples on the Web
City is made from clay, sand, and rock, all excavated from the innards of the site and reshaped.
—
Lara Johnson-Wheeler,
Vogue,
3 July 2026
Steam shovels and draglines excavated the foundations for highways and railroads.
—
Malika Bowling,
USA Today,
3 July 2026
The crash site was forest in 1944, but it was later excavated for rice cultivation, Fong told Jackson.
—
Kocha Olarn,
CNN Money,
1 July 2026
While Freddy was in Boston mourning Germany’s defeat, online sleuths excavated the least-savory tidbits from his X posting history.
—
Will Oremus,
The Atlantic,
1 July 2026
See All Example Sentences for excavate
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Lara Johnson-Wheeler,
Vogue,
3 July 2026
Steam shovels and draglines excavated the foundations for highways and railroads.
—
Malika Bowling,
USA Today,
3 July 2026
The crash site was forest in 1944, but it was later excavated for rice cultivation, Fong told Jackson.
—
Kocha Olarn,
CNN Money,
1 July 2026
While Freddy was in Boston mourning Germany’s defeat, online sleuths excavated the least-savory tidbits from his X posting history.
—
Will Oremus,
The Atlantic,
1 July 2026
See All Example Sentences for excavate
Cite this Entry
“Excavate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/excavate. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
excavate
verb
ex·ca·vate
ˈek-skə-ˌvāt
excavated; excavating
1
: to hollow out : form a hole in
excavate the side of a hill
2
: to make by hollowing out
excavate a tunnel
3
: to dig out and remove
excavate sand
4
: to uncover by digging away covering earth
excavate an ancient city
excavator
noun
-ˌvāt-ər
Medical Definition
excavate
verb
ex·ca·vate
ˈek-skə-ˌvāt
excavated; excavating
: to form a cavity or hole in
an excavated wisdom tooth
: to make excavations or become hollowed out
an area of infarction in soft tissue often tends to excavate
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