dig out

verb

dug out; digging out; digs out

transitive verb

1

: find, unearth

2

: to make hollow by digging

intransitive verb

: take off sense 1a

Synonyms

• ascertain
• descry
• detect
• determine
• dig up
• discover
• dredge (up)
• ferret (out)
• find
• find out
• get
• hit (on or upon)
• hunt (down or up)
• learn
• locate
• nose out
• root (out)
• rout (out)
• rummage
• run down
• scare up
• scout (up)
• track (down)
• turn up

Examples of dig out in a Sentence

she dug her old art supplies out of the basement

without saying where she was going, the young woman dug out early the next morning

Recent Examples on the Web

Dolton must dig out from Henyard’s disastrous tenure, and April 1 marks the beginning of that journey. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2025

If this corner of London is United’s Bermuda Triangle, then Farke’s players, on this occasion, managed to dig out their compasses and find their way through before full time. —Beren Cross, The Athletic, 16 Mar. 2025

Lumina, owned by European and Canadian investment firms, is digging out anorthosite, a grayish mineral used in paints and glass fibers. —Jeffrey Gettleman, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025

This all comes as the tourism industry continues to dig out of the hole left by the COVID-19 pandemic, which clobbered the hospitality sector. —Joe Hernandez, NPR, 6 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for dig out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout