expose
verb (used with object)
to lay open to danger, attack, harm, etc..
expose
1 American
[ik-spohz]
/ ɪkˈspoʊz /
verb (used with object)
-
exposes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
exposed,
past participle, past
-
exposing
present participle
-
to lay open to danger, attack, harm, etc..
to expose soldiers to gunfire;
to expose one's character to attack.
- Synonyms:
- jeopardize, imperil, endanger, subject
-
to lay open to something specified.
to expose oneself to the influence of bad companions.
-
to uncover or bare to the air, cold, etc..
to expose one's head to the rain.
-
to present to view; exhibit; display.
The storekeeper exposed his wares.
-
to make known, disclose, or reveal (intentions, secrets, etc.).
-
to reveal or unmask (a crime, fraud, impostor, etc.).
to expose a swindler.
-
to hold up to public reprehension or ridicule (fault, folly, a foolish act or person, etc.).
-
to desert in an unsheltered or open place; abandon, as a child.
-
to subject, as to the action of something.
to expose a photographic plate to light.
idioms
exposé
2
American
[ek-spoh-zey]
/ ˌɛk spoʊˈzeɪ /
noun
expose
1
British
/ ɪkˈspəʊz /
verb
-
to display for viewing; exhibit
-
to bring to public notice; disclose; reveal
to expose the facts
-
to divulge the identity of; unmask
-
(foll by to) to make subject or susceptible (to attack, criticism, etc)
-
to abandon (a child, animal, etc) in the open to die
-
(foll by to) to introduce (to) or acquaint (with)
he was exposed to the classics at an early age
-
photog to subject (a photographic film or plate) to light, X-rays, or some other type of actinic radiation
-
RC Church to exhibit (the consecrated Eucharistic Host or a relic) for public veneration
-
to display one's sexual organs in public
exposé
2
British
/ ɛksˈpəʊzeɪ /
noun
-
the act or an instance of bringing a scandal, crime, etc, to public notice
-
an article, book, or statement that discloses a scandal, crime, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
exposabilitynoun
-
exposalnoun
-
exposernoun
-
exposableadjective
-
self-exposingadjective
-
unexposableadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
exposesimple
-
exposessimple
-
have exposedperfect
-
has exposedperfect
-
am exposingprogressive
-
are exposingprogressive
-
is exposingprogressive
-
have been exposingperfect progressive
-
has been exposingperfect progressive
Past
-
exposedsimple
-
had exposedperfect
-
was exposingprogressive
-
were exposingprogressive
-
had been exposingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of expose1
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English exposen, from Old French exposer, equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + poser “to put” ( see pose 1), replacing Latin expōnere “to put out, expose, set forth in words”; see expound
Origin of exposé2
First recorded in 1795–1805; from French, noun use of past participle of exposer expose
Explanation
To expose means to uncover or allow to be in the open air. If you take off your coat and expose your bare arms to the terrible cold, your tattoos might freeze off. (Note: We don’t actually know if this is physically possible.) When you pronounce expose as it’s spelled, it can mean to leave out in the air, to put in peril (when you expose someone to danger), or to uncover. All of those examples are actions. However, when you pronounce it as though there is a French accent on the final "e," ex-poh-ZAY, it means the unmasking or exposure of something hidden (and usually bad or fraudulent), as when you watch an expose on 60 Minutes about the evils of frozen orange juice or some other toxic substance.
Vocabulary lists containing expose
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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:
Scientists have uncovered evidence that an enormous ancient cliff system may have helped expose the deepest rocks of the Grand Canyon nearly a billion years before the Colorado River began carving the landscape seen today.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
The facts expose that claim as just so much palaver.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
"Whenever we disturb the ground, when we cut down a tree and expose the soil, the fire can reignite," said fire chief Covens.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
For starters, Medicaid is a needs-based health-insurance program, and does not expose beneficiaries to the high deductibles found in many private plans.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
Every house-lantern has been lit—morning, dusk, and night ones—every chaise and chair fluffed, every door opened to expose the currant red and fuchsia and rich butter yellow of the rooms beyond.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
Whereas the European gothic, he concludes, was “an enlightened attack on a debased ruling class or entrenched superstition,” its American version emerged as “a Calvinist exposé of natural human corruption.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
FBI Director Kash Patel filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic on Monday, claiming the magazine’s recent exposé on his time as agency director was a malicious “hit piece.”
From Salon ● Apr. 20, 2026
Yet that’s all Redzepi has done since the damning New York Times exposé.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
But she faces strong competition from Mercury Prize winner Sam Fender and a resurgent Lily Allen, whose candid exposé of her failing marriage became one of last year's most talked-about albums.
From BBC ● Feb. 27, 2026
An exposé of Spiritualism appeared in the October 21, 1888, issue of the New York World.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
"The stress of facing execution, combined with the overcrowded conditions, exposes us to illness and anxiety," Desta said.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
The suit alleges that Kalshi, one of the biggest such markets, exposes New Yorkers to "serious personal and financial risk."
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
The final twist is one of the bleakest endings in postwar fiction, precisely because it exposes survival itself as a kind of illusion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Removing E2F3 alongside the missing RB exposes a critical weakness that researchers believe could be exploited with future therapies.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 4, 2026
The young rocks are on top, but as the river digs deeper, it exposes older and older layers.
From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins
Using crowdsourcing techniques, VroniPlag Wiki in Germany and Dissernet in Russia have exposed numerous instances of plagiarism by public servants in their dissertations and academic publications.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026
Human fat cells exposed to blood collected after moderate cycling also showed only small changes in gene activity.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
His parents will be fiercely protective of this significant milestone for their 13-year-old son and won't want him exposed to any family upset and drama.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
The purported poll by Median Strategies, reported in the California Post and touted on social media by Mayor Bass last week, was later exposed as a sham by The Times.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
She moved her fingers up and down, searching for the end of the bracers, and finally found where they stopped and left his fingers exposed.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Over time, erosion along this immense rocky boundary removed huge amounts of material, eventually exposing ancient crystalline basement rocks that can now be seen in the Grand Canyon in southern Arizona.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
The revelation came as the country grappled with whistleblower Edward Snowden’s leaks exposing the vast reach of the agency’s surveillance.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
He joined some 72,000 people who climbed over fences and swam around a breakwater to get into Ceuta, spreading panic in the tiny territory and exposing the vulnerability of Spain’s border with Morocco.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
Journalists covering last month's youth-led protests in India became targets of public anger and attacks over their perceived support for the government, exposing a deepening crisis of trust in traditional broadcasters.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
With one hand, Lola pushed back her hair, exposing her face for the first time.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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.
