disinter

[ dis-in-tur ]

verb (used with object)

, dis·in·terred, dis·in·ter·ring.

1. to take out of the place of interment; exhume; unearth.
2. to bring from obscurity into view:

   The actor's autobiography disinterred a past era.

disinter

/ ˌdɪsɪnˈtɜː /

verb

1. to remove or dig up; exhume
2. to bring (a secret, hidden facts, etc) to light; expose

Derived Forms

• ˌdisinˈterment, noun

Other Words From

• disin·terment noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of disinter¹

First recorded in 1605–15; dis- ¹ + inter

Example Sentences

Ingrid Rojas Contreras goes on to explore her family’s history as curanderos — South American shamans like her grandfather, whose bones the family decides to disinter in accordance with his spectral request.

From Los Angeles Times

Inter, to put in the earth, to bury; inter'ment; disinter'.

From Literature

Arlington National Cemetery would be required to disinter the remains of a former Navy officer who murdered a junior sailor decades ago under a proposed amendment to the annual defense budget bill.

From Washington Post

Earlier this year, an Arlington official responded, saying the Army did not have the legal authority to disinter Chabrol.

From Washington Post

A spokesman for Arlington National Cemetery, John David Harlow, affirmed that the Army lacked the authority to disinter the remains of those buried there before the law’s passage, saying only close relatives of the deceased may make such a request.

From Washington Post