Synonyms of digging

digging

verb

present participle of dig

1

as in excavating

to hollow out or form (something) by removing earth

a backhoe dug a hole in the backyard to make a swimming pool

Synonyms & Similar Words

• excavating
• shoveling
• dredging
• clawing
• mining
• grubbing
• burrowing
• delving
• scooping
• quarrying
• spading
• digging in

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• filling (in)
• smoothing (out or over)

2

as in enjoying

to take pleasure in

I really dig bluegrass music

Synonyms & Similar Words

• enjoying
• savoring
• loving
• liking
• relishing
• fancying
• taking to
• getting off (on)
• admiring
• grooving (on)
• rejoicing (in)
• going for
• appreciating
• adoring
• reveling (in)
• delighting (in)
• getting a kick out of
• revering
• venerating
• valuing
• having a soft spot for
• being partial to
• treasuring
• worshipping
• devouring
• drinking (in)
• eating (up)
• cherishing
• preferring
• feasting (on)
• prizing
• idolizing
• doting (on)
• indulging (in)
• favoring
• luxuriating (in)
• wallowing (in)
• cottoning (to)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hating
• disliking
• detesting
• loathing
• abhorring
• condemning
• despising
• abominating
• scorning

3

as in knowing

to have a clear idea of

can you dig what I'm saying?

Synonyms & Similar Words

• knowing
• deciphering
• understanding
• grasping
• seeing
• recognizing
• comprehending
• appreciating
• getting
• realizing
• sensing
• making
• discerning
• seizing
• perceiving
• decoding
• conceiving
• assimilating
• intuiting
• apprehending
• registering
• catching
• twigging
• tumbling (to)
• beholding
• grokking
• making out
• savvying
• catching on (to)
• cognizing
• compassing
• digesting
• picking up on
• fathoming
• absorbing
• cottoning (to or on to)
• penetrating
• taking in
• piercing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• missing
• misunderstanding
• misreading
• misinterpreting
• mistaking
• misconstruing
• misconceiving
• misperceiving
• misapprehending

4

as in poking

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• poking
• stabbing
• prodding
• punching
• spurring
• goading
• knocking
• jabbing
• nudging
• drilling
• jogging
• sticking
• chucking
• perforating
• pricking
• propelling
• driving
• puncturing
• piercing
• boring
• haling

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of digging

Throughout her decades-long career, the actor has mastered the art of making timeless pieces feel new again, whether that means digging through the archives or turning to tried-and-true items. — Daisy Maldonado, InStyle, 14 July 2026

In Sunset Beach, an ordinance forbids metal shovels on the beach, and digging anything more than 18 inches deep or five feet wide, police say. — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 13 July 2026

Use rocks, seashells, or marbles over the soil to make digging more difficult. — Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 13 July 2026

Living in Hawaii means digging deep into your wallet for just about everything. — Scott Cohn, CNBC, 10 July 2026

The alternative, digging it up, risks damaging cultural sites. — Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026

Pogacar then went solo, with Vingegaard digging deep to limit his losses. — ABC News, 9 July 2026

Elsewhere, residents have resorted to digging cesspits as latrine stocks run severely low, leading to soil and water contamination, according to Hosni Nadeem Mohanna, a water municipality spokesperson in Gaza City. — Sana Noor Haq, CNN Money, 5 July 2026

Those mounds of soil — not apparent in the photograph — were consistent with digging a hole as dirt is shoveled out and dumped along the edge. — Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 5 July 2026