exposition

/ɛkspəˈzɪʃən/

//ɛkspəˈzɪʃən// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"exposition" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“exposition” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,146. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,146
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The action of exposing something to something, such as skin to the sunlight.

Corpus desk

Index EN-exposition · exposition · English

exposition · rank #13,146 · 15 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #13,146
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH fart

Nearest frequency peer: fart (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “exposition”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “exposition” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

exposition vs expedition
80% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for exposition
PropertyValue
Headwordexposition
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɛkspəˈzɪʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#13,146
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “exposition”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).expositionlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “fart” (#13,147), “empowered” (#13,143), “fetish” (#13,149). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “exposition” is #13,146. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around exposition (IPA /ɛkspəˈzɪʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #13,146 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for exposition, with forms such as "epxosition", "exopsition", and "expoistion". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "expedition", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English exposicioun, from Old French esposicion, from Latin expositiō, from expōnere (“to put forth”). The sense meaning "exhibition" is a later semantic loan from French exposition. The correct English form is exposition, spelled E-X-P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The action of exposing something to something, such as skin to the sunlight.
  2. 2
    The act or process of declaring or describing something through either speech or writing, in nonfiction or in fiction; the portions and aspects of a piece of writing that exist mainly to describe or explain a set of things (such as, in fiction, the setting, characters and other non-plot elements).
  3. 3
    The act of expulsion, or being expelled, from a place.
  4. 4
    An exhibition, especially of goods, artwork or cultural displays to the public.
  5. 5
    An essay or speech in which any topic is discussed in detail.
  6. 6
    An opening section in fiction, in which background information about the characters, events or setting is conveyed.
  7. 7
    The opening section of a movement in sonata form; the opening section of a fugue.
  8. 8
    The abandonment of an unwanted child.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how exposition appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. This essay has too much exposition in it.
  2. My reviewer said she couldn't picture the setting for my story, so I'm improving the exposition.

Etymology

From Middle English exposicioun, from Old French esposicion, from Latin expositiō, from expōnere (“to put forth”). The sense meaning "exhibition" is a later semantic loan from French exposition.

This word in other languages

exposición(Español)exposition(Français)Ausstellung(Deutsch)exposição(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • epxosition
  • exopsition
  • expoistion
  • exposiiton
  • exposision
  • expositino
  • expositionn
  • expositoin
  • exposittion
  • expossition
  • expostiion
  • expposition
  • expsoition
  • exxposition
  • xeposition

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of exposition - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

epxosition2exopsition2expoistion2exposiiton2exposision1expositino2expositionn1expositoin2
Edit distance from "exposition"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "exposition"?
"exposition" is spelled E-X-P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ɛkspəˈzɪʃən/.
What does "exposition" mean?
As a noun, "exposition" means: The action of exposing something to something, such as skin to the sunlight.
What words are commonly confused with "exposition"?
"exposition" is commonly confused with "expedition". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "exposition"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "exposition" is /ɛkspəˈzɪʃən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "exposition"?
From Middle English exposicioun, from Old French esposicion, from Latin expositiō, from expōnere (“to put forth”). The sense meaning "exhibition" is a later semantic loan from French exposition. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "exposition", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

economical#13,141fundraiser#13,154courageous#13,127inherently#13,175

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

aesthetics15 variantsadmiration15 variantspatriotism15 variantsscholarly15 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list