exponent Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a person who pleads for a cause or propounds an idea
    advocator; proponent; advocate.
  2. noun someone who expounds and interprets or explains
  3. noun a mathematical notation indicating the number of times a quantity is multiplied by itself
    index; power.

WordNet

Ex*po"nent noun
Etymology
L. exponens, -entis, p. pr. of exponere to put out, set forth, expose. See Expound.
Definitions
  1. (Alg.) A number, letter, or any quantity written on the right hand of and above another quantity, and denoting how many times the latter is repeated as a factor to produce the power indicated; thus a2 denotes the second power, and an the xth power, of a (2 and x being the exponents). A fractional exponent, or index, is used to denote the root of a quantity. Thus, a⅓ denotes the third or cube root of a.
  2. One who, or that which, stands as an index or representative; as, the leader of a party is the exponent of its principles.

Webster 1913