as in digging
to hollow out or form (something) by removing earth
workmen are excavating a long tunnel that will eventually replace the aboveground expressway
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Recent Examples of excavating
Violators could be charged with a misdemeanor if they're caught excavating, digging or altering the land along the parkway.
—
James Taylor, CBS News, 31 Mar. 2026
Teamwork thrives when promises are specific, and as tough Saturn sextiles excavating Pluto, your friendship zone and your travel sector combine.
—Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 28 Mar. 2026
Where Fennell’s film departs from its source—reimagining rather than excavating—Powell’s novel goes the other direction, pushing deeper into Brontë’s life and work to find what might explain them.
—Literary Hub, 20 Mar. 2026
The city is leaning on the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to require Ford to cover the cost of fully excavating and restoring the site itself.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 8 Mar. 2026
Lam makes machines that Micron uses to make its wafers, adding and excavating material an atom at a time to carve the intricate architecture of a microchip.
—Mark Dee
march 3, Idaho Statesman, 3 Mar. 2026
An inspector recommended excavating on her side to allow waterproofing the wall and installing a drainpipe.
—Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
An inspector recommended excavating on her side to allow waterproofing of the wall and installing a drainpipe.
—Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
Serano’s team uncovered the first fossil evidence in 2019 while excavating a remote region of the central Saharan desert in Niger.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Feb. 2026
James Taylor, CBS News, 31 Mar. 2026
Teamwork thrives when promises are specific, and as tough Saturn sextiles excavating Pluto, your friendship zone and your travel sector combine.
—Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 28 Mar. 2026
Where Fennell’s film departs from its source—reimagining rather than excavating—Powell’s novel goes the other direction, pushing deeper into Brontë’s life and work to find what might explain them.
—Literary Hub, 20 Mar. 2026
The city is leaning on the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to require Ford to cover the cost of fully excavating and restoring the site itself.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 8 Mar. 2026
Lam makes machines that Micron uses to make its wafers, adding and excavating material an atom at a time to carve the intricate architecture of a microchip.
—Mark Dee
march 3, Idaho Statesman, 3 Mar. 2026
An inspector recommended excavating on her side to allow waterproofing the wall and installing a drainpipe.
—Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
An inspector recommended excavating on her side to allow waterproofing of the wall and installing a drainpipe.
—Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2026
Serano’s team uncovered the first fossil evidence in 2019 while excavating a remote region of the central Saharan desert in Niger.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excavating
digging
Verb
-
An excavator spent Thursday digging an escape channel.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Why is Elon Musk digging tunnels?—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Excavating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excavating. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
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