挖掘机，专业术语液压挖掘机，有正铲和反铲两种，一般通常见到是液压反铲挖掘机，适应于平常的建筑工地及工程施工，而液压正铲挖掘机则一般适应于大型矿山开挖装卸。**称“铲斗机”，俗称鸡头或反铲。因其多任务性，为建筑工程最常见的机械之一。 挖掘机机身下盘为履带车轮，上盘为动力机身，前装固定桁架，架上设备铲臂，可以俯仰，铲臂前端为铲斗，作业时，将铲斗贴向地层，以铲臂施力向前铲挖，土方即进入斗内，机身旋转，使铲斗就弃土位置，将铲斗底盖开启，土方即自行卸落，完成一次铲行为。 铲斗作业早期为钢索驶动，机体行走为柴油引擎。挖掘机适于平地山坡土壤、软岩及爆松后之岩石等挖方。

A backhoe, also called a rear actor or back actor, is a piece of excavating equipment or digger consisting of a digging bucket on the end of a two-part articulated arm. They are typically mounted on the back of a tractor or front loader, the later forming a 'backhoe loader' (colloquially known as a JCB in Ireland and UK). The section of the arm closest to the vehicle is known as the boom, and the section which carries the bucket is known as the dipper or dipper-stick (the terms "boom" and "dipper" having been used previously on steam shovels). The boom is generally attached to the vehicle through a pivot known as the king-post, which allows the arm to slew left and right, usually through a total of around 180–200 degrees.