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:
Locatelli said food could expose a person's character.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
DNA is now a gold standard, used to expose false convictions.
From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2026
Built and operated by the NSO in Hawaii, the telescope provided images detailed enough to expose plasma motions that had never previously been visible.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026
Chesney also talked about the structuring of his practices, specifically with having some in the morning and afternoon to expose his players to the heat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
Maybe it was too soon, it had just left her mother’s hands, it seemed wrong to expose it to her own eyes without letting it have some time to itself.
From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi
The unlikely vehicle is not some glamorous investigative exposé or Pulitzer-winning newsroom crusade.
From Salon ● May 13, 2026
Yet that’s all Redzepi has done since the damning New York Times exposé.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
Clint Patterson had been planning a book exposé when the “Capturing Bigfoot” team approached him, he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026
Lydia says the exposé has been "hilarious" although her mother feels it is a "shame people will resort to that in a local pub quiz".
From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025
All the journalist took from the Louvre was material for an article, an exposé on the museum’s lousy security.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
"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
But its strategy also exposes it to the risks of a volatile sector and the supply-chain constraints of a crowded market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 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
When the river level drops, it exposes the lower branches of willows lining the banks.
From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario
The organisms were microscopic, lacked protective hard tissues, and have been exposed to billions of years of geological degradation.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
The protests, which culminated in the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan last month, exposed deep frustration among young Indians over access to jobs and educational opportunities.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
As a result the women have less autonomy, which leaves them exposed.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
After the program was exposed in a national magazine, the College Board quietly ended it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 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
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
In an interview with The Australian newspaper, Stracke says the rush to deploy cash after the Covid-19 boom is now exposing poor lending decisions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
Public health officials are investigating after a person spent 11 hours at Universal Studios Hollywood while infected with the measles, possibly exposing other parkgoers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 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
Their absence made everything look different, like a fresh haircut exposing a band of untanned skin on a forehead.
From "Among the Hidden" 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.
