excavate

First attested in 1599, from Latin excavātus (“hollowed out”), perfect passive participle of excavō (“to hollow out”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from ex (“out”) + cavō (“to hollow out, pierce”), from cavus (“cave, hole”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). Participial usage up until Early Modern English.

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛk.skə.veɪt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Hyphenation: ex‧ca‧va‧te

excavate (third-person singular simple present excavates, present participle excavating, simple past and past participle excavated)

1. (transitive) To make a hole in (something); to hollow.
2. (transitive) To remove part of (something) by scooping or digging it out.
3. (transitive) To uncover (something) by digging.

• excavation
• excavator

excavate (not comparable)

1. (rare, as an adjective) Made hollow.
2. (obsolete, as a participle) excavated, hollowed out

From a substantivization of Latin excavātus through the associated taxon's name (Excavata), see -ate (noun-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.

excavate (plural excavates)

1. (zoology) Any member of a major grouping of unicellular eukaryotes, of the clade Excavata.

• Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “excavate”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

excavāte

1. second-person plural present active imperative of excavō

excavate

1. second-person singular voseo imperative of excavar combined with te