khai quật
Definition
- Verb:
- To excavate: To dig into the ground systematically to uncover buried archaeological remains, artifacts, or fossils.
- To exhume: To dig up something that was buried, especially a corpse from a grave.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Các nhà khảo cổ đang khai quật một ngôi đền cổ. (Archaeologists are excavating an ancient temple.)
- Nhà chức trách đã ra lệnh khai quật thi thể để điều tra. (The authorities ordered the body to be exhumed for investigation.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is used primarily in formal, scientific, or official contexts related to archaeology, paleontology, and legal procedures.
- It implies a deliberate, careful, and often research-oriented process of uncovering what is hidden underground.
Variants and Related Words
- Khai quật khảo cổ (v): to conduct an archaeological excavation.
- Dự án khai quật khảo cổ đã phát hiện nhiều cổ vật. (The archaeological excavation project discovered many artifacts.)
Synonyms
- Excavate: To dig out and remove earth carefully to uncover buried objects.
- Exhume: To dig out something buried, especially a corpse, from the ground.
- Unearth: To find something in the ground by digging.
Related Idioms
- : To excavate/unearth the past. This is a metaphorical use meaning to investigate or bring to light forgotten or hidden historical facts or memories.
- Cuốn sách này như một nỗ lực khai quật quá khứ đau thương của dân tộc. (This book is like an effort to excavate the painful past of the nation.)