What is the meaning of excavation?

noun

• The act of digging.
  • usage: "there's an interesting excavation going on near Princeton"
  • synonyms: digging, dig
• The site of an archeological exploration.
  • usage: "they set up camp next to the dig"
  • synonyms: dig, archeological site
• A hole in the ground made by excavating.
• The act of extracting ores or coal etc from the earth.
  • synonyms: mining