exponential
adjective
Simple meaning
Characterised by a very rapid rate of change.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ehkspohnehnchuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɛkspoʊˈnɛntʃəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
mathematics
Characterised by a rate of change that is proportional to the value of the varying quantity, or, equivalently, by a doubling or halving over successive fixed intervals of time or other parameter, described as exponential growth or exponential decay.
loosely
Characterised by a very rapid rate of change, especially increase, or merely a very large amount or degree.
mathematics
Expressed in terms of an exponent (power of a base), the base often being 10 or e.
Relating to an exponent.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Formality
- Technical
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Characterised by a rate of change that is proportional to the value of the varying quantity, or, equivalently, by a doubling or halving over successive fixed intervals of time or other parameter, described as exponential growth or exponential decay.
Used this way, exponential is a specialist word with a clearly warm, approving pull. This is a mathematical use: it is defined precisely and belongs to working with figures and calculations rather than to ordinary conversation.
- Emotional tone
- Positive
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Successful and accomplished
- Usage feel
- Clinical and detached
Where it naturally appears
- Mathematics
- Geometry
- Academic writing
- Education/classroom
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use exponential
- “There were two deaths on Monday, four on Tuesday, and eight on Wednesday. The rate of increase seems exponential.”adjective
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
In an exponential manner.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
An equation involving exponential functions of a variable.
A mathematical expression consisting of a constant (especially e) raised to some power.
A function in which an independent variable appears as an exponent.
A decrease that follows an exponential function.
A series derived from the expansion of an exponential expression.
A decrease that follows an exponential function.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.