excavate

verb

ex·​ca·​vate ˈek-skə-ˌvāt 

excavated; excavating

transitive verb

1

: to form a cavity or hole in

2

: to form by hollowing out

3

: to dig out and remove

4

: to expose to view by or as if by digging away a covering

excavate the remains of a temple

intransitive verb

: to make excavations

Synonyms of excavate

• dig
• shovel

Examples of excavate in a Sentence

They excavated an ancient city.

It is the first site to be excavated in this area.

They began excavating the backyard for their new pool.

The excess dirt was carefully excavated.

Recent Examples on the Web

The site was illegally excavated in the 1960s, the statues dismantled and scattered among various countries. — Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 4 Nov. 2026

The team also excavated and documented previously unknown parts of the tombs, including an offering chapel belonging to Sabu’s wife, Ikhetnefert, which was never found by Mariette. — Anne Doran For Artnews, Robb Report, 3 Nov. 2026

It was found about 30 feet below the surface of the airfield while crews excavated the South Detention Basin, a stormwater management facility, as part of the ORDNext terminal expansion project. — Natalie McMillan, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026

Building on such discoveries, the 2026–2030 plan calls for underwater robots, deep-diving equipment and specialized tools capable of carefully excavating fragile remains on the seabed. — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 1 Nov. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin excavātus, past participle of excavāre "to hollow out, form a hole in," from ex- ex- entry 1 + cavāre "to make hollow, hollow out," verbal derivative of cavus "hollow, concave" — more at hole entry 1

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for excavate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate
• angulate

Kids Definition

excavate

verb

ex·​ca·​vate ˈek-skə-ˌvāt 

excavated; excavating

1

: to hollow out : form a hole in

excavate the side of a hill

2

: to make by hollowing out

excavate a tunnel

3

: to dig out and remove

excavate sand

4

: to uncover by digging away covering earth

excavate an ancient city

excavator

-ˌvāt-ər

noun

Medical Definition

excavate

verb

ex·​ca·​vate ˈek-skə-ˌvāt 

excavated; excavating

transitive verb

: to form a cavity or hole in

an excavated wisdom tooth

intransitive verb

: to make excavations or become hollowed out

an area of infarction in soft tissue often tends to excavate