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Digging Up the History of Delve
We must dig deep into the English language’s past to find the origins of delve. The verb traces to the early Old English word delfan meaning “to dig.” For centuries, there was only delving—no digging—because dig didn’t exist until much later; it appears in early Middle English. Given dig and delve’s overlapping meanings today, is the phrase “dig and delve” (as in the line “eleven, twelve, dig and delve,” from the nursery rhyme that begins “one, two, buckle my shoe”) redundant? Not necessarily. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, in some local uses, dig was the term for working with a mattock (a tool similar to an adze or a pick), while delve was reserved for work done using a spade. Although delve has a history of use for literal digging, nowadays the term is often applied to carefully researching or examining something, as in “delving into the past.”
Examples of delve in a Sentence
Gary Graff, Billboard, 24 Oct. 2025
Tumor delves into the story of a low-level Los Angeles private investigator.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2025
Cameron Crowe’s new memoir The Uncool focuses on his years spent as a wunderkind rock journalist for Rolling Stone and other publications, delving into his time capturing the height of ’70s rock with subjects like David Bowie, Led Zeppelin and Joni Mitchell.
—Cameron Crowe, HollywoodReporter, 24 Oct. 2025
Her most recent project is the development of a coffee table book that delves into the rich tapestry of Haitian narratives.
—Essence, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for delve
Cite this Entry
“Delve.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/delve. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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