exhibitionism

American  

[ek-suh-bish-uh-niz-uhm] / ˌɛk səˈbɪʃ əˌnɪz əm /

noun

1. a tendency to display one's abilities or to behave in such a way as to attract attention.

2. Psychiatry. a disorder characterized especially by a compulsion to exhibit the genitals in public.

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exhibitionism British  

/ ˌɛksɪˈbɪʃəˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. a compulsive desire to attract attention to oneself, esp by absurd or exaggerated behaviour or boasting

2. psychiatry a compulsive desire to expose one's genital organs publicly

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Other Word Forms

• exhibitionist noun
• exhibitionistic adjective
• nonexhibitionism noun

Etymology

Origin of exhibitionism

First recorded in 1890–95; exhibition + -ism

Explanation

Exhibitionism Is acting in a way that deliberately and extravagantly draws attention to yourself. Your brother's exhibitionism might lead him to wear a colorful wig and a tuxedo for the first day of school. There is a kind of exhibitionism that is considered a psychiatric illness — generally, this involves being naked, or partially naked, in public. The more ordinary type of exhibitionism also involves behavior that attracts notice, but it might be singing and dancing in a mall, wearing eccentric clothing, or another conspicuous way of acting. Exhibitionism comes from exhibit, "action of displaying," from the Latin exhibere, "to show or display."

Example Sentences

But, if protesting is just fruitless exhibitionism, as Teddy claims, and radical acts of direct action don’t seem to work any better, what is there to do if no one will listen?

From Salon • Oct. 31, 2025

Or, as the NFL described it several decades ago, an “unrestrained dance … deemed to be contrived exhibitionism that has no place in the sport.”

From Washington Post • Feb. 4, 2022

I feel I captured a genuine moment hidden inside his obvious exhibitionism.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 1, 2021

My question for you, which I also think you should ask yourself, is: What exactly do you like about the idea of this kind of exhibitionism?

From Slate • Jun. 7, 2021

Later, as “man of letters,” he unfortunately exaggerated this as well as every other of his unique characteristics, in an idle exhibitionism, and made literary use of them.

From Paul Verlaine by Zweig, Stefan