excavate

1. V-T When archaeologists or other people excavate a piece of land, they remove earth carefully from it and look for things such as pots, bones, or buildings that are buried there, in order to discover information about the past. 挖掘 (古物)

A new Danish expedition is again excavating the site in annual summer digs. 一支新的丹麦考察队又在对那个地方进行年度的夏季挖掘。

2. excavationN-VAR 挖掘

She worked on the excavation of a Mayan archaeological site. 她那时从事一个玛雅考古遗址的挖掘工作。

3. V-T To excavate means to dig a hole in the ground, for example, in order to build there. 挖; 开凿

A contractor was hired to drain the reservoir and to excavate soil from one area for replacement with clay. 一个承包商被雇来排干蓄水池里的水，然后挖出其中一块地方的泥土，换上粘土。

4. excavationN-VAR 挖; 开凿

...the excavation of canals. …运河的开凿。