exploitative

adjective

ex·​ploit·​ative ik-ˈsplȯi-tə-tiv  ˈek-ˌsplȯi- 

: exploiting or tending to exploit

especially : unfairly or cynically using another person or group for profit or advantage

exploitative terms of employment

an exploitative film

exploitatively adverb

Examples of exploitative in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This allows for the eye to fully measure his exploitative changes of speed, and the dodgy shifts in direction that have made him the World Cup’s all-time leading goal scorer. — Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 18 July 2026

In other words, age limits change the economic calculus for exploitative features. — Ravi Iyer, Time, 18 July 2026

Washington denounces Cuba’s overseas medical missions as exploitative and presses allies to drop them, but Calabria’s governor says losing the doctors would cripple care and vows to keep them. — Paolo Santalucia, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026

These platforms that drive comparison and isolation also feed predatory sports betting, exploitative content, and the kind of solitary scrolling that displaces sleep, friendship, and exercise. — Wes Moore, STAT, 1 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

exploit entry 2 + -ative

First Known Use

1879, in the meaning defined above