exploit

¹ American  

[ek-sploit, ik-sploit] / ˈɛk splɔɪt, ɪkˈsplɔɪt /

noun

1. a striking or notable deed; feat; spirited or heroic act.

   the exploits of Alexander the Great.

   Synonyms:

   accomplishment

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exploit ² American  

[ik-sploit, eks-ploit, ik-sploit] / ɪkˈsplɔɪt, ˈɛks plɔɪt, ɪkˈsplɔɪt /

verb (used with object)

• exploits,
  present (3rd person singular)
• exploited,
  past participle,  past
• exploiting
  present participle

1. to utilize, especially for profit; turn to practical account.

   to exploit a business opportunity.

2. to use selfishly for one's own ends.

   employers who exploit their workers.

3. to advance or further through exploitation; promote.

   He exploited his new movie through a series of guest appearances.

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noun

Digital Technology.

1. 1. a flaw in hardware or software that is vulnerable to hacking or other cyberattacks.

   2. a piece of software that takes advantage of such a flaw to compromise a computer system or network.

2. (in a video game) the use of a bug or flaw in game design to a player’s advantage or to the disadvantage of other players.

exploit British  

noun

1. a notable deed or feat, esp one that is noble or heroic

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verb

1. to take advantage of (a person, situation, etc), esp unethically or unjustly for one's own ends

2. to make the best use of

   to exploit natural resources

Usage

What does exploit mean? As a verb, exploit commonly means to selfishly take advantage of someone in order to profit from them or otherwise benefit oneself. As a noun, exploit means a notable or heroic accomplishment. 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, to create a profit or other benefit. But when the verb is applied to people, it is always used negatively. The noun form of the verb exploit is exploitation, and the adjective form is exploitative, as in exploitative practices. Example: I know you’re trying to live up to the exploits and success of your father, but exploiting your workers to maximize profit is not the way to do it.

Synonym Usage

See achievement.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• exploitability
  noun
• exploitation
  noun
• exploiter
  noun
• exploitable
  adjective
• exploitative
  adjective
• exploitatory
  adjective
• exploitive
  adjective
• nonexploitable
  adjective
• nonexploitative
  adjective
• nonexploitive
  adjective
• unexploitable
  adjective
• unexploitative
  adjective
• unexploitive
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• exploiting
  present
• exploited
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• exploit
  simple
• exploits
  simple
• have exploited
  perfect
• has exploited
  perfect
• am exploiting
  progressive
• are exploiting
  progressive
• is exploiting
  progressive
• have been exploiting
  perfect progressive
• has been exploiting
  perfect progressive

Past

• exploited
  simple
• had exploited
  perfect
• was exploiting
  progressive
• were exploiting
  progressive
• had been exploiting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will exploit
  simple
• will have exploited
  perfect
• will be exploiting
  progressive
• will have been exploiting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of exploit¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English exploit, espleit, from Old French exploit, Anglo-French espleit, from Latin explicitum, neuter of explicitus “unfolded, set forth,” variant past participle of explicāre “to unfold, unroll, smooth, reveal”; see explicate

Origin of exploit²

First recorded in 1300–50; from French exploiter, derivative of exploit (noun); replacing late Middle English expleiten “to achieve,” from Anglo-French, Middle French espleiter, espleitier, derivative of espleit, esploit, expleit, exploit (noun), from Latin explicitum “matter settled, displayed,” noun use of explicitus “unfolded, revealed,” variant past participle of explicāre; see exploit ¹

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Explanation

An exploit is a heroic act or notable deed. The King Arthur legends are full of stories of the exploits of the Knights of the Round Table, including Sir Lancelot and King Arthur himself. This noun is from Middle English expleit, "outcome," from Latin explicitus, "unfolded, set forth." The verb exploit means to use someone or something, usually selfishly or for profit. Workers who are tired of being exploited by factory owners form unions that allow them to stand together as a powerful force.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

exploit exploits exploited exploiting

But now when bad guys exploit a vulnerability, they're able to do so much more quickly.

From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2026

Given those opportunities, do you think Meta will be able to resist the temptation to exploit the private information users give over to Muse in the mistaken impression that it will stay private?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

The weaknesses found in the PHP programming language, which is used by millions of websites, had been quietly resting there for years and are not easy to exploit.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

Cyber experts are racing to patch it before hackers use AI to exploit it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

But perhaps the best explanation of why Bobby cast aside all financial offers came from Bobby himself: “People are trying to exploit me. Nobody is going to make a nickel off of me!”

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Early on, Sakurai exploits the inherent absurdity of telling a story populated by so many ludicrous characters.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

In most cases, the indomitable system exploits a major character flaw: The ghosts don’t really do anything for Jack Torrance in “The Shining” except unlock a cabinet for him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 12, 2026

They gathered to remember "a girl like no other" - a trailblazing rugby player whose exploits on the pitch were cruelly cut short by her death at just 33.

From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026

He was fascinated by the camera operators who followed his Mudcats exploits and asked them to teach him how they worked.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

He kept replaying his own exploits, tacking on little flourishes that never happened.

From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

On Friday, Ch Supt Marcus Noden said officers "suspect vulnerable people are being exploited and paid to damage buildings they believe are HMOs".

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

More impressive still is that along the way they have thoroughly reconsidered the piano, finding the kaleidoscopic breadth that has lurked within it, incompletely exploited for more than two centuries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026

Governments and cyber-security agencies around the world are scrambling to contain a massive flaw in internet technology, after AI discovered issues that could be exploited by hackers.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

It can be exploited in many ways, some requiring just a few seconds, by hackers who could use it to run unauthorized software on any unpatched web server.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

They exploited understandable discrepancies between the bulletins and the individual in the courtroom—was there proof that this Benjamin Jones was the Benjamin Jones in question?

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead

The Philadelphia Eagles built one of the NFL’s best rosters in recent years by exploiting an accounting trick.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

The second half of “You Can See Everything” examines the conjugal nature of denial and doubt as Seyfried and Fielder begin to worry that Evans is exploiting the now-incarcerated Holmes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026

The use of runners attacking space Kane creates is not new - Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers have previously found joy exploiting it, but Gordon has been the latest beneficiary, while starting out wide.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

As you can see, buying and holding over the past five- and 10-year periods has far outperformed three different ways of exploiting the historical tendency for market weakness between May Day and Halloween.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

For decades, Cuban elites and wealthy Americans had been exploiting the island, gobbling up the richest sugar farms, the most profitable utilities and casinos.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

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