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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.”
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Examples of delve in a Sentence
theweek, 8 Nov. 2024
The film delves into themes of control, manipulation, and revenge.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 5 Nov. 2024
The pastry session delves into the world of French patisserie, creating delights such as profiteroles, chocolate tarts and artisanal cookies.
—Sandra MacGregor, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024
Taking to their Instagram Stories, the Wicked stars also shared a new featurette for the film, which delves into the true magic of the musical adaptation: live music.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 28 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Delve.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/delve. Accessed 29 Nov. 2024.
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