ex·ca·vate

[eks-kuh-veyt]
verb (used with object), ex·ca·vat·ed, ex·ca·vat·ing.
1.
to make hollow by removing the inner part; make a hole or cavity in; form into a hollow, as by digging: The ground was excavated for a foundation.
2.
to make (a hole, tunnel, etc.) by removing material.
3.
to dig or scoop out (earth, sand, etc.).
4.
to expose or lay bare by or as if by digging; unearth: to excavate an ancient city.

Origin:
1590–1600; < Latin excavātus (past participle of excavāre to hollow out), equivalent to ex- ex-1 + cav(um) hollow, cave + -ātus -ate1

re·ex·ca·vate, verb (used with object), re·ex·ca·vat·ed, re·ex·ca·vat·ing.
un·ex·ca·vat·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To excavate
00:10
Excavate is a GRE word you need to know.
So is extricate. Does it mean:
to free or release from entanglement; disengage:
adj. fully revealed or made clear
Collins
World English Dictionary
excavate (ˈɛkskəˌveɪt) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
vb
1.  to remove (soil, earth, etc) by digging; dig out
2.  to make (a hole, cavity, or tunnel) in (solid matter) by hollowing or removing the centre or inner part: to excavate a tooth
3.  to unearth (buried objects) methodically in an attempt to discover information about the past
 
[C16: from Latin excavāre, from cavāre to make hollow, from cavus hollow]
 
exca'vation
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

excavate
1590s, from L. excavatus, pp. of excavare "to hollow out," from ex- "out" + cavare "to hollow," from cavus "cave." Related: Excavated; excavating.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Preparatory work will occupy construction crews for several months, as they clear ground and excavate for new foundations.
Foraging birds excavate large, rectangular holes in trunks and logs.
There are no plans now to excavate any more remains, and those that have been excavated will be re-buried after study.
They will return next summer to excavate the skeletons.
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT