as in discovery
the act or process of sighting or learning the existence of something for the first time
the unearthing of a prehistoric man who had been preserved in an Alpine glacier proved to be a great boon to science
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Recent Examples of unearthing
Literary Hub, 12 May 2026
On Monday, teachers, school board members, city officials, curious residents and even one 1976 student of the school previously known as May Sands School came out to see the unearthing.
—Miami Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
As part of that unearthing, the company is looking to do sitework and underground utilities for data centers — doing everything from moving the dirt to implementing drainage — to lay the foundation for both dry and wet utilities, Executive Vice President Travis Mross said.
—Kelsey Brown, San Antonio Express-News, 28 Jan. 2026
For Ruffier, the hardest part was filming scenes that show her unearthing and reading her old school-time diaries, full of entries about her then-teacher.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 20 Jan. 2026
The murders followed a deadly boat crash that led to the unearthing of multiple scandals involving the wealthy family, one of the state's most formidable legal dynasties.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Oct. 2025
Our setting, The Case Is Altered, is named after a 17th-century Ben Jonson play and refers to the unearthing of evidence that completely changes a legal outcome.
—Yvonne Zipp, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Sep. 2025
Rochana Redkar, Clinical Fellow in Paediatric Haematology Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, was excited to see the unearthing.
—Jennifer Hauser, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
The trailer also teases the unearthing of Addams family secrets.
—Allison Degrushe Published, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Pubsubhub User, Baltimore Sun, 4 June 2026
Podcasters Paul Gannon and Eli Silverman have done a remarkable job of unearthing details about the Winkie, including tracking down a French novelty record based on the friend-chip, various archival documents, and new interviews with competition participants, including Jeff Olan and Penny Floyd.
—Jonathan Odden, Artforum, 2 June 2026
Gilbert’s Christine is alive and curious, unearthing the heart inside her monstrous mentor.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 1 June 2026
Researchers began unearthing fragments at La Anita farm near El Calafate in Santa Cruz, Argentina, back in 2018.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 28 May 2026
There's a good amount of postgame content, so unearthing everything takes a fair bit longer.
—Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 19 May 2026
In this triumphant tour de force, Crain and a group of fertility patients reckon with the threats to their family future, unearthing hope from an unsettled legal landscape.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 May 2026
In this triumphant tour de force, Crain and a group of fertility patients reckon with the threats to their family future, unearthing hope from an unsettled legal landscape.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 14 May 2026
The idea was likened to a national version of unearthing an ancient Egyptian tomb and expected to fascinate audiences.
—Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 22 Apr. 2026
Noun
The writing of the book has been a soulful examination, a symbolic unearthing of certain memories and stories that Mercado might understand as a labor necessary to capture the fullness of a history, the ephemera and evidence of, in this case, a love story.
—Literary Hub, 12 May 2026
On Monday, teachers, school board members, city officials, curious residents and even one 1976 student of the school previously known as May Sands School came out to see the unearthing.
—Miami Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
As part of that unearthing, the company is looking to do sitework and underground utilities for data centers — doing everything from moving the dirt to implementing drainage — to lay the foundation for both dry and wet utilities, Executive Vice President Travis Mross said.
—Kelsey Brown, San Antonio Express-News, 28 Jan. 2026
For Ruffier, the hardest part was filming scenes that show her unearthing and reading her old school-time diaries, full of entries about her then-teacher.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 20 Jan. 2026
The murders followed a deadly boat crash that led to the unearthing of multiple scandals involving the wealthy family, one of the state's most formidable legal dynasties.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Oct. 2025
Our setting, The Case Is Altered, is named after a 17th-century Ben Jonson play and refers to the unearthing of evidence that completely changes a legal outcome.
—Yvonne Zipp, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Sep. 2025
Rochana Redkar, Clinical Fellow in Paediatric Haematology Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, was excited to see the unearthing.
—Jennifer Hauser, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
The trailer also teases the unearthing of Addams family secrets.
—Allison Degrushe Published, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Verb
Partnership negotiations meet values reality as intellectual Mercury energizes your 7th House of Partnership, while unearthing Pluto examines your 2nd House of Finances.
—Pubsubhub User, Baltimore Sun, 4 June 2026
Podcasters Paul Gannon and Eli Silverman have done a remarkable job of unearthing details about the Winkie, including tracking down a French novelty record based on the friend-chip, various archival documents, and new interviews with competition participants, including Jeff Olan and Penny Floyd.
—Jonathan Odden, Artforum, 2 June 2026
Gilbert’s Christine is alive and curious, unearthing the heart inside her monstrous mentor.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 1 June 2026
Researchers began unearthing fragments at La Anita farm near El Calafate in Santa Cruz, Argentina, back in 2018.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 28 May 2026
There's a good amount of postgame content, so unearthing everything takes a fair bit longer.
—Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 19 May 2026
In this triumphant tour de force, Crain and a group of fertility patients reckon with the threats to their family future, unearthing hope from an unsettled legal landscape.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 May 2026
In this triumphant tour de force, Crain and a group of fertility patients reckon with the threats to their family future, unearthing hope from an unsettled legal landscape.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 14 May 2026
The idea was likened to a national version of unearthing an ancient Egyptian tomb and expected to fascinate audiences.
—Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 22 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unearthing
Noun
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The discovery is so surprising because even though AGNs are rich with gas and dust — the building blocks of planets — the turbulent conditions within the disks wouldn't generally be considered ideal for forming planets.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
14 June 2026
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Salinger also set a July 1 deadline for the remaining defendants to propose a case schedule setting forth deadlines for discovery and future motions.—
Flint McColgan,
Boston Herald,
14 June 2026
Verb
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His hand dove for his pocket, fishing out his wallet, exhuming cards — credit, debit, whatever — and punching their digits into his favorite betting apps.—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
10 Apr. 2026
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Police in 2023 uncovered hundreds of bodies buried in a forest in Kenya’s coastal Kilifi region, exhuming mass graves tied to a religious leader accused of starving his followers to death.—
Greg Wehner,
FOXNews.com,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The findings were published Thursday in The Astronomical Journal.—
Kierra Frazier,
CBS News,
19 June 2026
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The findings have been published in the scientific journal BioRxiv but have not yet been peer reviewed.—
Kathleen Magramo,
CNN Money,
19 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unearthing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unearthing. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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