exhibit
Americanverb (used with object)
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to offer or expose to view; present for inspection.
to exhibit the latest models of cars.
- Synonyms:
- demonstrate, show
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to manifest or display.
to exhibit anger; to exhibit interest.
- Antonyms:
- conceal
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to place on show.
to exhibit paintings.
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to make manifest; explain.
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Law. to submit (a document, object, etc.) in evidence in a court of law.
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Medicine/Medical Obsolete. to administer (something) as a remedy.
verb (used without object)
noun
verb
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(also intr) to display (something) to the public for interest or instruction
this artist exhibits all over the world
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to manifest; display; show
the child exhibited signs of distress
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law to produce (a document or object) in court to serve as evidence
noun
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an object or collection exhibited to the public
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law a document or object produced in court and referred to or identified by a witness in giving evidence
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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exhibitantnoun
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exhibiternoun
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exhibitornoun
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preexhibitnoun
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reexhibitverb (used with object)
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exhibitableadjective
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exhibitoryadjective
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self-exhibitedadjective
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unexhibitableadjective
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unexhibitedadjective
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well-exhibitedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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exhibitsimple
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exhibitssimple
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have exhibitedperfect
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has exhibitedperfect
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am exhibitingprogressive
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are exhibitingprogressive
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is exhibitingprogressive
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have been exhibitingperfect progressive
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has been exhibitingperfect progressive
Past
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exhibitedsimple
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had exhibitedperfect
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was exhibitingprogressive
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were exhibitingprogressive
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had been exhibitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exhibit
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English exhibiten “to show,” from Latin exhibitus, past participle of exhibēre, from ex- ex- 1 + -hibēre (combining form of habēre “to have”); cf. habit 1
Explanation
An exhibit is an item that is shown off for the public, such as a painting on display at a gallery or a historical document shown under glass at a museum. The main thing to remember about an exhibit is that it refers to something presented formally and in a public setting. For example, if you put an action figure on a side table in your apartment and your friends come by and notice it, well, it’s just an action figure on a side table. Put that same action figure on a pedestal in a fancy gallery, arrange it just so, and voilà! It’s an exhibit. People may even look it over and discuss its meaning in hushed tones. Students of law — or people who watch a lot of TV — will know that when used in a legal context, the word exhibit can also refer to an item presented as evidence in a legal court.
Vocabulary lists containing exhibit
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The result was her 2024 Roberts Projects exhibit, “Betye Saar: New Work,” an objet trouvé medley in bronze and gold hues.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The Body Worlds exhibit featured in a scene of the 2006 James Bond film "Casino Royale".
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
“The market is starting to exhibit the characteristics of an upcycle,” Le Peuch said on a call with analysts following results.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
The debut exhibit, featuring kinetic artwork, is titled, “A Pregnant Pause.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
I wondered if Harry blamed our grandfather in some part for showing Miss Goodacre his carrion beetle exhibit.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
Weeks before its opening in Los Angeles, the Lucas Museum will be on hand to share new details about its exhibits.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
A clockwise march past the 85 exhibits develops a chronology from the birth of modern war in the tangled British and French corpses of J.M.W.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Meow Wolf exhibits are the result of sometimes hundreds of disparate artists coming together in a shared space.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Robinson's defence team objected repeatedly during the first two days of the preliminary hearing to video exhibits and different testimony on grounds including hearsay.
From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026
I’ll be back, Percy promised, but if the creatures in the exhibits could hear him, they gave no sign.
From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan
"The agents followed inefficient routes and exhibited clumsy behaviours that no human would choose", the CSA wrote.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Corpse flowers have been a staple of the Huntington since 1999, when the garden exhibited its first corpse flower.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
She takes us back to the 1850s and 1860s, capturing the thrill that viewers felt when a major painting was publicly exhibited for the first time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
"When it's ready to be exhibited, we want millions of people to see it," added Ricketts, Britain's former ambassador to France.
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
It is said that Phineas exhibited himself and his tamping iron at Barnum's.
From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman
However, the 6-foot-5, 260-pound Adongo began exhibiting increasingly erratic behavior.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The London scene was dominated by Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and the Young British Artists - brazenly exhibiting sharks in formaldehyde and making art out of unmade beds.
From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2026
Another patient in Canada has provisionally tested positive but is not exhibiting symptoms and the test remains to be confirmed.
From Barron's ● May 18, 2026
A couple from the cruise, one of whom was exhibiting hantavirus symptoms, were brought to a biocontainment unit at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026
“I’ll admit that this Frankenstein Complex you’re exhibiting has a certain justification—hence the First Law in the first place. But the Law, I repeat and repeat, has not been removed—merely modified.”
From "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
