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

Next week, heavy equipment will be brought in to excavate the property. — Frederick Sutton Sinclair, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026

The remains of these servants, or retainers, were first excavated from the funerary complexes at Abydos, eastern Egypt, which date from around 3000 BC, in the 1920s. — Jack Guy, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2026

Being mindful of its construction—the resort is five years in the making—each and every stone guests see is the stone found on the peninsula, excavated and repurposed to keep the area's natural materials intact. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026

But there is very little archaeological evidence available, given that many of the earliest Egyptian tombs were plundered and/or hastily excavated. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 5 Oct. 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