to exhume the body
5
8.6
- phrasal verb
- /ɪɡˈzjum ðə ˈbɑdi/
- Specialized
:
exhumar el cuerpo
- The detectives received a warrant to exhume the body for further investigation.
- permission to exhume the body
- court order to exhume the body
- order to exhume the body
Examples
-
Now, sir, if I may have your permission to exhume the body of Rowan Morrison.
-
But while those who exhumed the bodies of suspected vampires invariably noted what they believed was the lack of decomposition, they almost always presented evidence that the body really was decomposing.
Academic text (1990) -
The neighbors asked to exhume the bodies in order to check for fresh blood in their hearts.
Blog text (1) -
They're the ones that exhume the bodies for 'em.
-
And I'd like your permission to exhume the body, if one exists, and have it removed for an autopsy.
-
After the death and burial of a village person, the group would surreptitiously visit the grave and exhume the body.
Academic text (2000) -
I remember in Gloucester, where we exhumed the body four years after, there was still enough poison, even in the fingernails and the hair.
-
Relatives exhume the bodies of the dead, remove the bones from the coffins, and scrub them clean before reburying them.
Blog text (7) -
They should exhume the bodies of his mom and dad, and then after they harvest the DNA, drop their old bones in a vat of acid, just like he did to many thousands of moms and dads.
Blog text (18) -
In this case, the self-confessed witches alleged that they had ridden their hyenas to the grave of their victim, Chidava, and had exhumed the body and eaten a part of it.
Academic text (2004)
Synonyms
139
2.0
To take something out of the ground by digging
34
8.1
To dig up a body from the ground for checking or burying again
28
5.8
To dig in the ground to find or remove old objects, often by archaeologists
21
3.4
Find and take out something that is hidden or forgotten
18
4.2
To dig up something buried in the ground
1
9.5
To dig up a buried body or object to examine it
How Formal
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is a literal, compositional description: 'exhume' means to dig up (a buried corpse) and 'body' denotes the physical remains, with 'the' as a determiner. Because the overall meaning is directly derivable from the constituent words and follows a common verb + object pattern, a learner who knows the parts will understand it.
Etymology
Exhume the body comes from the literal act of digging up a grave to take a buried body out so doctors can look for clues about how the person died. That's why it means 'to dig up a buried body' for investigation.