excavation

C2+ Topic:Nature & Landscape

US /ˌɛkskəˈveɪʃən/ UK /ˌɛkskəˈveɪʃən/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
the act of digging out earth, or a site so dug

The excavation uncovered the foundations of a Roman villa.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the act of digging out... dig digging quarry pit hollowunearthingmining

Opposites

filling burial

Word family

Related forms excavate excavator cavity

Etymology

From Latin excavatio, from excavare ('to hollow out'), from ex- ('out') + cavare ('to hollow'), from cavus ('hollow').

excavatio Latin cavus Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Nature & Landscape Word Formation & Derivatives

# excavation

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˌɛkskəˈveɪʃən
**IPA (UK):** ˌɛkskəˈveɪʃən

## Meanings
1. the act of digging out earth, or a site so dug

## Examples
- The excavation uncovered the foundations of a Roman villa.

## Synonyms
- dig
- digging
- quarry
- pit
- hollow
- unearthing
- mining

## Antonyms
- filling
- burial

## Related Forms
- excavate
- excavator
- cavity

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: excavatio
- Root: cavus

## Etymology
From Latin excavatio, from excavare ('to hollow out'), from ex- ('out') + cavare ('to hollow'), from cavus ('hollow').

## AI Etymology
Excavation comes from Latin excavatio, from excavare ('to hollow out'), from ex- ('out') + cavare ('to hollow'), from cavus ('hollow'). The etymological trail includes Latin excavatio and Latin cavus. As a noun, excavation names the act of digging out earth, or a site so dug. The same family is visible in related forms such as excavate, excavator, and cavity. The analysis is partly morphological, with the modern form built from the elements named in the history.

## Topics
- Nature & Landscape
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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excavation

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