4 syllables: Ex, ca, va, tion. Stress on va.
ek-skuh-VAY-shuhn
/ˌɛkskəˈveɪʃən/
Excavation is pronounced ek-skuh-VAY-shuhn (/ˌɛkskəˈveɪʃən/). It has four syllables (Ex-ca-va-tion), with the stress on "va". Excavation is the act or process of uncovering or removing earth to reveal something buried, often as part of archaeological digs, construction, or mining. It refers to the space or passage uncovered by removing surrounding material, and to the project or site where such digging occurs. The term can also describe the excavation itself as a noun, including the produced void or trench.
nounExcavation is the act or process of uncovering or removing earth to reveal something buried, often as part of archaeological digs, construction, or mining. It refers to the space or passage uncovered by removing surrounding material, and to the project or site where such digging occurs. The term can also describe the excavation itself as a noun, including the produced void or trench.
How to Pronounce Excavation
"The archaeologists conducted an excavation at the old temple site."
"Heavy equipment was used to speed up the excavation of the foundation trench."
"Geologists noted an unusual stratigraphy within the excavation layer."
Correct pronunciation is ek-SKAY-shn̩ (IPA ɪɡˌskeɪˈveɪʃn̩). The primary stress falls on the second syllable, with a secondary light stress on the third. Start with /ɪ/ as in “kit,” then /ɡs/ cluster, /keɪ/ as in “say,” and end with /ʃn̩/ like “shn” with a syllabic n. You’ll hear the final syllabic n in fluent speech. Audio reference: Cambridge/Oxford entries provide native-environment examples you can compare against on Forvo or YouGlish.
Two frequent errors: (1) flattening the /æ/ into a schwa or a lax /eɪ/ in the second syllable; keep /skæ/ as in ‘skay’ with clear /eɪ/. (2) misplacing the /t/ and /ʃ/ sequence, pronouncing /tʃn/ or delaying /n/ too late. Correction: produce /ˌɛkˈskeɪ.veɪʃn̩/ with a crisp /sk/ cluster, then a clear /eɪ/ before /ʃn̩/. Practice by isolating the /æ/ to /eɪ/ transition and the /t/ + /ʃ/ blend in slow repetition.
US and UK share /ˌɛkˈskeɪveɪʃn̩/ patterns, but rhoticity affects preceding vowels in connected speech; US often features stronger linking and slight /ɪ/ in unstressed syllables, while UK may show reduced vowels in fast speech. Australian tends to centralized or rounded vowels in fast speech and a non-rhotic pattern with subtle /eɪ/ shifts. Overall stress remains on the second syllable, with final syllabic n.
The difficulty lies in the multi-syllabic structure with the consonant cluster /sk/ followed by /eɪ/ and the final /ʃn̩/ sequence; the /ks/ sequence can be mispronounced as /ɡz/ or simplified, and the /æ/ can drift toward a schwa in rapid speech. Focus on segmenting as ek - skei - vey - shn̩ and keeping the /ʃ/ and syllabic /n̩/ distinct.
A unique feature is the two main voiced/unvoiced transitions in the mid syllable: the /ks/ repackaged into a crisp /ks/ within /s-/ onset of the /keɪ/ vowel, and the final syllabic /n̩/ that carries the entire last syllable. Your mouth must readily switch from the alveolar sibilant to the palato-alveolar /ʃ/ before the neutral /n̩/. This requires precise timing of the tongue blade and tip.
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Excavation comes from the Latin word ex (out) + cavare (to hollow, dig) through the Old French excavacion, evolving in English in the 15th century as a general term for the act of digging out material. The root cav- (hollow, cavity) appears in many related terms (cave, caveat, cavity). Early senses emphasized hollowing or removing earth to reveal something beneath the surface; by the 18th–19th centuries, it broadened to include archaeological and geological contexts, as well as civil engineering uses (excavation of a trench or foundation). First known use in English appears in specialized texts discussing construction and mining, with broader adoption in the 19th century as archaeology grew as a discipline and excavation became a standard term for field digging and site formation processes.
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Words that rhyme with "Excavation"
-ion sounds
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