English
excave
Excave comes from Latin excavō ‘to hollow out, excavate’, and goes back to Proto-Italic *kawos.
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kawosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavus
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavō‘to make hollow, hollow out, excavate’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEexcavōas excavare‘to hollow out, excavate’
- Englishearliest quotation 1868excave
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kawosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavus
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavō‘to make hollow, hollow out, excavate’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEexcavōas excavare‘to hollow out, excavate’
- Englishearliest quotation 1868excave
Earliest quotation: 1868, Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum: “the last 100 to 150 feet in depth of…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱewh₁- ‘to swell’
church, kirk, hound, cyst, cumulus, cajole, 39 more
through Proto-Italic *kawos
through Latin cavus
jail, cage, cavity, gaol, concave, cavern, caul, cavil, 16 more
Today it means
verb To excavate.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Italic *kawos / excave