exponentially

[ek-spoh-nen-shuh-lee, ‐spuh‐]

adverb

1. at a steady, rapid rate.

   The cost of a college education has increased exponentially over the last 30 years.

2. Mathematics.,  at a continuous rate of growth or decay that can be calculated using the constant e, according to the rules of raising e to the power of a positive or negative exponent.

   Any population growing exponentially must, sooner or later, encounter shortages of resources.

   The measurable rate at which a radioactive nuclide’s atoms decay exponentially is the basis of radiometric dating.

Other Word Forms

• nonexponentially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of exponentially¹

exponential ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

He said demand went up "exponentially because of Christmas" and many thousands in Blackpool and the surrounding area would "go hungry" if it could not keep going.

Read more on BBC

Singh cited forecasts from International Data Corp. that show the amount of data in the world is growing exponentially.

Read more on Barron's

It can be surrounded by Ferraris worth exponentially more, but it gets all the attention.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

He envisions a future where money moves as seamlessly between people on the internet as information and data, and where near-zero-cost transactions grow exponentially.

Read more on MarketWatch

He has characterized trans women as a great danger, even though they are exponentially more likely to be victims than offenders.

Read more on Salon