unearth
Bring to light
To unearth something is to dig it up from the ground: Archaeologists unearthed pottery fragments at the site.
More commonly, unearth means to discover through investigation or effort—bringing hidden things to light as if excavating them: Reporters unearthed evidence of corruption.
The word implies that what's found was buried, concealed, or obscure.
Locate through effort
- uncoverReveal what's hidden
- revealMake something visible
- exposeMake known publicly
- detectNotice or discover
disclose · stumble upon · bring to light · turn up · come across · ferret out · root out · dredge up
Unearth by shoveling
- unburyExtract from beneath soil
- shovelTool for moving earth
- trowelFlat blade for spreading
- spadeFlat-bladed digging implement
soil · buried · grave · tomb · coffin · remains · bones · fossils
Make known publicly
- revealMake something visible
- hiddenKept out of sight
- concealedMade invisible deliberately
- buriedPlaced beneath earth
forgotten · suppressed · scandal · conspiracy · cover-up · truth · evidence · documents
Human-made historical object
- relicPreserved ancient object
- potsherdFragment of earthenware
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
- dig siteArchaeological excavation location
excavation · prehistory · antiquity · ruins · civilization · neolithic · paleolithic · burial mound
find
Locate through effort
detect · disclose · stumble upon · bring to light · turn up · come across · ferret out · root out · dredge up · dig up
dig
Unearth by shoveling
spade · soil · buried · grave · tomb · coffin · remains · bones · fossils · sediment
expose
Make known publicly
buried · forgotten · suppressed · scandal · conspiracy · cover-up · truth · evidence · documents · whistleblower
artifact
Human-made historical object
- relicPreserved ancient object
- potsherdFragment of earthenware
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
dig site · excavation · prehistory · antiquity · ruins · civilization · neolithic · paleolithic · burial mound · barrow
gold
Element seventy-nine
buried treasure · chest · cache · riches · artifacts · relics · bounty · plunder · loot · coins
- discoveryfind, finding, discovery, discover, finding out
- investigatinginvestigate, examine, inspect, probe, search
- revealreveal, disclose, expose, unmask, unveil
- dig outburrow, tunnel, shovel, scoop, dredge
- DIG synonymsburrow, scoop, drill, trench
- root outroot out, flush out, ferret out, smoke out, weed out