exposure

noun

ex·​po·​sure ik-ˈspō-zhər 

1

: the fact or condition of being exposed: such as

a

: the condition of being presented to view or made known

a politician seeks a lot of exposure

b

: the condition of being unprotected especially from severe weather

died of exposure

c

: the condition of being subject to some effect or influence

risk exposure to the flu

d

: the condition of being at risk of financial loss

minimizes your exposure to market fluctuations

also : an amount at risk

2

: the act or an instance of exposing: such as

a

: disclosure of something secret

tried to prevent exposure of their past

b

: the treating of sensitized material (such as film) to controlled amounts of radiant energy

also : the amount of such energy or length of such treatment

a 3-second exposure

3

a

: the manner of being exposed

b

: the position (as of a house) with respect to weather influences or compass points

a room with a southern exposure

4

: a piece or section of sensitized material (such as film) on which an exposure is or can be made

36 exposures per roll

Synonyms

• vulnerability

Examples of exposure in a Sentence

children's exposure to violence on television

He risks exposure to ridicule by saying such things in public.

The candidates are competing for television exposure.

Recent Examples on the Web

Thirty seconds of exposure to 130-degree water will also cause third-degree burns. —Julia Marnin, Sacbee.com, 27 Oct. 2025

Barclays had no exposure to First Brands, but suffered a £110 million ($147 million) hit from the collapse of Tricolor, per Bloomberg, which has led to a full reexamination of its loan portfolio. —Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025

Central, South, and Southeast Asia lost as much as 11% of their 2019 GDP owing to exposure to fine particulate matter, according to World Bank estimates. —Angelica Ang, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2025

And generally, card issuers have kept their rates somewhat elevated to mitigate their exposure to riskier borrowers. —Jessica Dickler, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing exposure

• exposure meter
• indecent exposure
• post-exposure
• post-exposure prophylaxis
• pre-exposure
• pre-exposure prophylaxis
• re-exposure
• time exposure

Rhymes for exposure

• composure
• cynosure
• disclosure
• enclosure
• foreclosure
• inclosure
• closure
• crozier
• hosier
• mosher
• nondisclosure
• postexposure

Kids Definition

exposure

noun

ex·​po·​sure ik-ˈspō-zhər 

1

: the fact or condition of being exposed

exposure to cold

2

a

: the act or an instance of exposing

b

: the act of letting light expose photographic film

also : the amount or length of time of such exposure

3

: a position with respect to direction

a southern exposure

4

: a section of a film for a single picture

36 exposures per roll of film

Medical Definition

exposure

noun

ex·​po·​sure ik-ˈspō-zhər 

1

: the fact or condition of being exposed: as

a

: the condition of being unprotected especially from severe weather

the hiker died of exposure after becoming lost in the snowstorm

b

: the condition of being subject to some detrimental effect or harmful condition

repeated exposure to bronchial irritants

risk exposure to the flu

benign skin discolorations caused by sun exposure

—Katie Tyndall

2

: the act or an instance of exposing see indecent exposure

Legal Definition

exposure

noun

ex·​po·​sure

1

: the fact or condition of being exposed

also : the possibility of loss caused by an outside source

—used in insurance

2

: the act or an instance of exposing

3

a

: something that exposes someone or something

b

: something (as a condition, situation, or action) that creates a risk of financial loss especially for which one may be insured

two forms of insurance are needed to cover the exposure fully

—R. I. Mehr

also : the extent to which one is at risk