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dig 1 of 2

verb

ˈdig How to pronounce dig (audio)
Definition of dignext
1
as in to excavate
to hollow out or form (something) by removing earth a backhoe dug a hole in the backyard to make a swimming pool

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Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to enjoy
to take pleasure in I really dig bluegrass music

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to know
to have a clear idea of can you dig what I'm saying?

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to poke
to urge or push forward with or as if with a pointed object every time I slowed down, he'd dig me in the ribs

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dig

2 of 2

noun

1
as in jab
a quick thrust gave him a dig in the ribs with my elbow

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2
as in insult
an act or expression showing scorn and usually intended to hurt another's feelings got in a couple of digs about lawyers at my friend's expense

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in apartment
digs plural a room or set of rooms in a private house or a block used as a separate dwelling place check out my new digs on the north side of town

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dig
Verb
In 2011, Iowa farmers found a Chinese national on his knees in a cornfield, digging through the soil. — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026 But in order to survive the woods, Murphy will have to dig deep into his wartime past and rely on his own skills and smarts to make out it out intact. — Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Noun
But senior outside hitter Emma Chang led all players with 10 kills, and Grace Anderson had six kills along with 15 assists, nine service points, five aces and 13 digs. — Matt Le Cren, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026 Precious objects slowly being excavated Archaeologists have been working at this dig site since 2009, according to lead archaeologist Rick Knecht. — Samantha Watson, NPR, 19 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for dig
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dig
  1. excavate
  2. enjoy
  3. know
  4. poke
  5. jab
  6. insult
  7. apartment
  8. shovel
Verb
  • Rather than excavating and extensively modifying hundreds of unique Minuteman-era facilities, the Air Force is developing a standardized, modular construction approach for the new silos.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 20 Sep. 2026
  • On an archaeological dig in Sulawesi, an island in modern-day Indonesia, Brumm and his colleagues excavated some very old human remains.
    — Pien Huang, NPR, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of excavate
Verb
  • The rest of the women have pretty much accepted Vicki’s temperament by now and mostly operate around her, enjoying the refreshing Miami energy after the bumpiness of the previous parties.
    — Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
  • The radical AfD in Germany and moderating National Rally in France are both focused on ending immigration and enjoy support from voters wary of escalating conflict with Russia.
    — Ben Smith, semafor.com, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of enjoy
Verb
  • The Pakistani Taliban, formally known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, is separate from but allied with Afghanistan's Taliban.
    — MUNIR AHMED, Arkansas Online, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Still, no one seems to know what to do when confronted by the real thing.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of know
Verb
  • Flip and continue to cook until the flesh begins to flake when poked with a fork, 1 to 2 minutes.
    — Kate Williams, AJC.com, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Don’t bury the rhizomes when planting—the tops should just poke above the soil surface.
    — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of poke
Noun
  • No more jabs being traded through social media and television networks.
    — Trey Wallace OutKick, FOXNews.com, 19 Sep. 2026
  • The scourge of Steve Spurrier Spurrier took too many verbal jabs to list here and took special glee in beating the Dawgs, never forgiving them for beating his Florida Gators in his 1966 senior season, ruining their SEC championship hopes.
    — The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of jab
Noun
  • This is on top of Perez Hilton and plenty of other sites (Gawker included) that would just flat-out insult people, draw nasty things on their pictures, and just generally malign them.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Reclaiming the work of women selling fish, and the word that was an insult but is now a beautiful brand, is a wonderful turn of phrase and time, to us.
    — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of insult
Noun
  • Their new apartment was the result of a two-and-a-half-year search through central Milan, followed by a renovation that took almost as long.
    — Hamish Bowles, Vogue, 20 Sep. 2026
  • The governor of the Moscow region, Andrey Vorobyov, reported in a post to Telegram that one person was killed and five others injured when a drone hit an apartment block in Sofino, to the southwest of Moscow city.
    — David Brennan, ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of apartment
Verb
  • Castro told investigators he was being attacked with a broom and shovel before opening fire, but prosecutors say surveillance footage contradicted his account.
    — Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 18 Sep. 2026
  • And each time, a fireman or a police officer comes over and shovels the remains into a white plastic bucket and carries it away.
    — Jeff Goodell, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of shovel

Phrases Containing dig

Browse Nearby Words

diffusion
dig
dig (away)
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Cite this Entry

“Dig.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dig. Accessed 27 Sep. 2026.

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