unearth

verb

un·​earth ˌən-ˈərth 

unearthed; unearthing; unearths

transitive verb

1

: to dig up out of or as if out of the earth : exhume

unearth treasure

unearth an old photo album

2

: to make known or public : bring to light

unearth a scandal

Synonyms of unearth

• exhume

Choose the Right Synonym for unearth

discover, ascertain, determine, unearth, learn mean to find out what one did not previously know.

discover may apply to something requiring exploration or investigation or to a chance encounter.

discovered the source of the river

ascertain implies effort to find the facts or the truth proceeding from awareness of ignorance or uncertainty.

attempts to ascertain the population of the region

determine emphasizes the intent to establish the facts definitely or precisely.

unable to determine the origin of the word

unearth implies bringing to light something forgotten or hidden.

unearth old records

learn may imply acquiring knowledge with little effort or conscious intention (as by simply being told) or it may imply study and practice.

I learned her name only today

learning Greek

Examples of unearth in a Sentence

An old document was unearthed from the files.

They unearthed evidence that he had accepted bribes.

Recent Examples on the Web

The remains were unearthed from 324-million-year-old Late Mississippian deposits in the Tesnus Formation of western Texas. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 31 Aug. 2026

The extent of his former client list was unearthed through whispers and gossip. — Rob Picheta, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026

The university asserted that the subpoena would create unnecessary work for the police department, unearth irrelevant documents and waste the time of everyone involved. — Joaquin Sapien, ProPublica, 28 Aug. 2026

Yet in direct response to increasing public scrutiny over abuse of its technology, Flock in December 2025 changed its systems to make officers' misuse exponentially more difficult for the public to unearth. — Kenny Jacoby, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for unearth

• childbirth
• rebirth
• stillbirth
• tamworth
• afterbirth
• berth
• birth
• dearth
• earth
• firth
• girth
• mirth

Kids Definition

unearth

verb

un·​earth ˌən-ˈərth 

ˈən-

1

: to drive or draw from the earth : dig up

unearth buried treasure

2

: to bring to light : discover

unearth a secret