DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

開掘

简开掘 · 繁開掘

Mandarin · pinyin kāi jué

to dig; to excavate
(fig.) to explore (archival materials) and unearth findings

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

開: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start
掘: jué · dig, excavate; excavate cave
开: kāi · open; initiate, begin, start

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

1–2 · kai1 jue2

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

3character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

開掘 · find source passages ↗ · 开掘 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hoi1 gwat6

Cantonese word readings for 開掘. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

verb

to dig; to unearth; to excavate
(figurative) to investigate (in an archive); to dig up (old stories); to go deep into

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack