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

With the 1793 invention of the cotton gin—which separated cotton fibers from its seeds with a previously undreamed-of efficiency—America’s plantation economy expanded exponentially and so did its use of slave labor.

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The town increased housing, attracted Fortune 500 employers, exponentially improved the number of students going to college and leveraged developers to improve schools, resources for senior citizens, and police and fire services.

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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.

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

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

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