archaeology

play

noun ar·chae·ol·o·gy \ˌär-kē-ˈä-lə-jē\

variants: or

archeology

Definition of archaeology

1 : the scientific study of material remains (such as fossil relics, artifacts, and monuments) of past human life and activities
2 : remains of the culture of a people : antiquities the archaeology of the Incas

archaeological

play \ˌär-kē-ə-ˈlä-ji-kəl\ adjective

archaeologically

play \-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

archaeologist

play \ˌär-kē-ˈä-lə-jist\ noun

See archaeology defined for English-language learners

See archaeology defined for kids

Recent Examples of archaeology from the Web

It was foreseen in the planning for Linea C that there would be plenty of time set aside for archaeology ...

— ben wedeman, CNN, "A mini Pompeii? 1800-year-old ruins discovered in Rome metro excavation", 30 June 2017
Tracy Achonwa is a student at University College London (UCL), studying archaeology.

— grace timothy, Teen Vogue, "How University College London Students Are Protesting Rent Prices", 26 June 2017
What followed was a foray into experimental archaeology.

— mira abed, latimes.com, "Scientists make water bottles the old-fashioned way to see if they were toxic to early Californians", 24 June 2017
My mother and sisters have a serious interest in archaeology as well.

— kathi santora, baltimoresun.com, "Why you need to know... Dan Coates, creator of the Liriodendron ice house exhibit", 23 June 2017
Dewey works in anthropology and archaeology at Clatsop Community College and specializes in shipwrecks and told The Daily Astorian that the piece of wood is some type of old growth timber.

— lizzy acker, OregonLive.com, "Debris that could be from a 100-year-old shipwreck found on Oregon coast", 16 June 2017
Corrigan earned a bachelor's of arts degree and majored in archaeology.

— michelle mullins, Naperville Sun, "Naperville People in the News", 1 June 2017
The archaeology of the Middle East and North Africa is exceptionally rich and diverse, giving insight into some of the earliest and most significant cultures in human history.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "New Online Database Catalogues 20,000 Threatened Archaeological Sites", 1 June 2017
For Ahmet and for me, one of the great joys of life has been the study of history, music, languages, literature, art, and archaeology . . .

— james reginato, Vanities, "Mica Ertegun, the Nonagenarian Style Legend Who Shows No Signs of Stopping", 19 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'archaeology'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.