excavator

noun

ex·​ca·​va·​tor ˈek-skə-ˌvā-tər 

: one that excavates

especially : a power-operated shovel

Examples of excavator in a Sentence

The excavators found ancient tools at the site.

Recent Examples on the Web

In an early version, Zvyagintsev imagined a final scene in which Nikolay, the Russian Heemeyer, bursts out of his garage riding a bulldozer and uses it to topple an excavator. — Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2026

The actuators push a piston with pressurized oil, much like the arm of an excavator, only shrunk down. — New Atlas, 1 Nov. 2026

But over the past two days, instead of seeing the green and red foliage, Huber saw excavators, a growing pile of cut-down tree limbs and a clear view of the highway. — Charlotte Observer, 28 Oct. 2026

But this May, less than four years later, it was stripped for parts worth millions and crushed, the steel teeth of an excavator tearing through its fuselage at a facility on the outskirts of Phoenix. — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

excavate + -or entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1815, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for excavator

• activator
• actuator
• agitator
• alligator
• allocator
• alternator
• animator
• annotator
• applicator
• arbitrator
• aspirator
• aviator

Medical Definition

excavator

noun

ex·​ca·​va·​tor ˈek-skə-ˌvāt-ər 

: an instrument used to open bodily cavities (as in the teeth) or remove material from them