exploitative

[ ik-sploi-tuh-tiv ]

adjective

1. taking unfair or unethical advantage of a person, group, or situation for the purpose of profit, comfort, or advancement:

   Her success attracted too many exploitative relatives to count.

Other Words From

• ex·ploit·a·tive·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of exploitative¹

First recorded in 1890–95; exploit ²( def ) + -ative ( def )

Example Sentences

To her great credit, Bradley captures her subject at some truly vulnerable moments—at one point we watch her immediate, emotional reaction to the death of her mentor Kobe Bryant—without ever coming off as exploitative.

From Time

Trafficking frequently looks like vulnerable people struggling to survive in a violent, exploitative world.

From No Straight News

We may ban users based on these reports such as when we believe users are involved in sharing child exploitative imagery.

From Time

Anti-racism is a particular framework that, for me, can still sit quite comfortably within exploitative systems.

From Time

While some aspects of the exploitative kafala system have been scrapped, experts worry that the human toll of Qatar’s World Cup dreams are not being fully acknowledged.

From Ozy

The added charge for access to hotel Wi-Fi is not only exploitative but increasingly irrelevant.

From The Daily Beast

The sex workers I spoke with rightly call it “vile,” “gross,” “terrifying,” and “exploitative.”

From The Daily Beast

Others have found its portrayal of Southern life offensive, exploitative, or inaccurate.

From The Daily Beast

While human rights groups have called it exploitative, performers say it makes their lives in China better.

From The Daily Beast

I think our intentions are good in trying to protect adolescents from exploitative, if not downright lecherous, adults.

From The Daily Beast

Other exploitative human activity based in utilitarianism is not crass or all so obviously wrong, especially in today's context.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• corrupt
• crafty
• crooked
• deceitful
• dishonest
• illegal
• petty
• ruthless
• selfish
• shady
• shameless
• underhanded
• unethical
• venal

More About Exploitative

What does exploitative mean?

Exploitative is an adjective that describes someone or something that selfishly takes advantage of someone or a group of people in order to profit from them or otherwise benefit.

It comes from the verb exploit, which commonly means to take advantage in such a way. The act of doing so is exploitation.

As a verb, exploit can also be used in a more neutral way that doesn’t imply selfishness: to make the best use of something, especially an opportunity, or to create a profit or other benefit. But when the verb is applied to people, it is always used negatively.

Exploitative is only ever used negatively, and it always implies greed, selfishness, or unethical practices. It’s often used in the context of the exploitation of workers by businesses, especially in phrases like exploitative practices. 

Other, less common variations of exploitative are exploitive and exploitatory.

Example: The article exposes many of the industry’s exploitative business practices.

Where does exploitative come from?

The first records of the word exploitative come from the late 1800s. Its base word, exploit, is recorded much earlier and derives from the Latin explicātus, meaning “unfolded” or “set forth.” It wasn’t until around the 1800s that exploit started to be used to refer to extracting natural resources from the earth, and then to using someone or something for one’s own selfish ends.

Exploitative is most often used in the context of taking advantage of people. It is especially used to refer to the exploitation of workers by businesses that underpay and overwork them, or that take advantage of them in other ways. Such actions are often called exploitative practices. Exploitative often implies that it’s being done by people who are in positions of power to those without power. Poor people and people of color are often targets of such exploitation.

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to exploitative?

• exploitive (adjective)
• exploitatory (adjective)
• exploitatively (adverb)
• exploit (verb)

What are some words that share a root or word element with exploitative? 

 

• exploitation
• explicit
• explicate

What are some words that often get used in discussing exploitative?

 

• practices
• business
• workers
• corporation
• poor
• profit
• advantage
• greed
• unethical

How is exploitative used in real life?

Exploit and exploitation can be used negatively or neutrally, but exploitative is always used in a negative way. It’s usually used in the context of people who are being exploited for profit.

Following the money points back to the exploitative practices of large corporations. The wealthy profit on the backs of the poor. No opinions there, just facts, m’am.

— Jaime Mathis (@_JMathis) June 11, 2020

academics who write about harmful systems & yet feel no responsibility to support movements against harmful systems are simply exploitative. thanks

— micah herskind #8toabolition (@MicahHerskind) June 10, 2020

Exploitative?! It was genocidal. https://t.co/pZBiHCc75U

— Andrew Neil (@afneil) June 9, 2020

 

 

Try using exploitative!

True or False? 

The word exploitative can be used in a positive way.