exploitation

noun

ex·​ploi·​ta·​tion ˌek-ˌsplȯi-ˈtā-shən 

: an act or instance of exploiting

exploitation of natural resources

exploitation of immigrant laborers

clever exploitation of the system

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

But there is also psychological exploitation, the kind can draw a young person into a terrorist cell, steal his identity or twist run-of-the-mill insecurity into paranoid delusions that women (or Jews or immigrants or whoever) are the enemy. —Los Angeles Times, 31 Dec. 2022

There are two other types of reforms that could help create an environment less susceptible to exploitation by patent-hungry pharmaceutical companies. —Annalisa Merelli, Quartz, 14 Dec. 2022

Human Rights Watch Indonesia Researcher Andreas Harsono warned the laws were open to exploitation. —Masrur Jamaluddin, CNN, 5 Dec. 2022

Some of that may be as repayment for training; some may simply be exploitation of kids and families seeking the MLB dream. —Dallas News, 9 Mar. 2022

Medical exploitation and discrimination, language barriers and concerns about immigration status, childcare and work schedules played big roles. —San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Jan. 2023

But Chazelle is trying to make a point with all the excess: that the joy of cinema has always gone hand in hand with exploitation, abuse, and off-screen villainy. —David Sims, The Atlantic, 23 Dec. 2022

It’s this social thriller that tackles many poignant themes like race, exploitation in art, and capitalism. —Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2022

The ordinary exploitation involved in the process of accumulating extraordinary wealth—low wages, poor working conditions, and union busting—is all copacetic. —Kate Aronoff, The New Republic, 18 Nov. 2022

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Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, from exploiter "to exploit entry 2" + -ation -ation

First Known Use

1795, in the meaning defined above