exponential

American  

[ek-spoh-nen-shuhl, -spuh-] / ˌɛk spoʊˈnɛn ʃəl, -spə- /

adjective

1. of or relating to an exponent or exponents.

2. Mathematics.

   1. of or relating to the constant e.

   2. (of an equation) having one or more unknown variables in one or more exponents.

3. rising or expanding at a steady, rapid rate.

   a city experiencing exponential growth.

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noun

1. Mathematics.

   1. the constant e raised to the power equal to a given expression, as e 3 x, which is the exponential of 3 x.

   2. any positive constant raised to a power.

exponential British  

/ ˌɛkspəʊˈnɛnʃəl /

adjective

1. maths (of a function, curve, series, or equation) of, containing, or involving one or more numbers or quantities raised to an exponent, esp e x

2.  exp.  maths raised to the power of e, the base of natural logarithms

3. of or involving an exponent or exponents

4. informal very rapid

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noun

1. maths an exponential function, etc

exponential Scientific  

/ ĕk′spə-nĕn′shəl /

1. Relating to a mathematical expression containing one or more exponents.

2. ◆ Something is said to increase or decrease exponentially if its rate of change must be expressed using exponents. A graph of such a rate would appear not as a straight line, but as a curve that continually becomes steeper or shallower.

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Other Word Forms

• exponentially adverb
• nonexponential adjective

Etymology

Origin of exponential

First recorded in 1695–1705; exponent + -ial

Example Sentences

Since the start of the year, price has consistently found support along its rising 21 day exponential moving average, reinforcing the short term uptrend.

From Barron's

Several industry experts are anticipating exponential growth as European and Asian markets catch up quick with US adopters.

From Barron's

Noting the exponential growth of transactions in the last two years, one recent industry report estimates the global number of users has quadrupled to 15 million.

From The Wall Street Journal

"My screen time has been exponential these past couple of weeks because I just love seeing people reacting to it," the 36-year-old says.

From BBC

School choice is out of the bottle, experiencing exponential growth.

From The Wall Street Journal