From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishexhibitionex‧hi‧bi‧tion /ˌeksəˈbɪʃən/ ●●● W2 AWL noun 1 [countable] especially British EnglishSHOW/LET somebody SEE something a show of paintings, photographs, or other objects that people can go to seeexhibition of an exhibition of black and white photographsstage/mount/hold etc an exhibition The museum is staging an exhibition of Picasso’s work.2 [uncountable]SHOW/LET somebody SEE something when something such as a painting is shown in a public placeexhibition of She never agreed to the public exhibition of her sculptures while she was still alive.on exhibition A collection of paintings by David Hockney is on exhibition at the Museum of Art.3 → exhibition of something4 → make an exhibition of yourselfCOLLOCATIONSverbshave an exhibitionThe college is having an exhibition of the students’ work in April.hold/mount/stage an exhibition formal (=have an exhibition)Hayward Gallery is mounting an impressive exhibition of new British artists.put on an exhibition (=have an exhibition)Last summer the museum put on some wonderful exhibitions for children.host an exhibition formal (=provide the place for an exhibition)Boston’s Museum of Fine Art hosts temporary exhibitions alongside its permanent collection.go to an exhibition (also attend/visit an exhibition formal)We went to an exhibition of Russian art at the National Gallery.see an exhibitionWe also saw an exhibition of paintings by Sydney Lough Thompson, a New Zealand artist.arrange/organize an exhibitionThe trust arranged an exhibition of his drawings in New York.promote an exhibition (=tell the public about it)Our press officer contacted the local radio and TV stations to promote the exhibition.adjectivesa big/large exhibitionThis is the largest exhibition of its kind that we have ever seen in London.an important exhibitionan important exhibition of twentieth century arta major exhibition (=large and important)His work is the subject of a major exhibition at the National Gallery.a small exhibitionThe library held a small exhibition showcasing the work of local artists.a permanent exhibitionThe museum hosts a permanent exhibition of Boston’s history.a temporary exhibitionTemporary exhibitions are usually held in the basement.a touring/travelling exhibition (=one that moves from place to place)The touring exhibition is scheduled to be in Dallas from March until June.a retrospective exhibition (=one that shows work from the past)a retrospective exhibition celebrating 150 years of photographyexhibition + NOUNan exhibition centre British English, an exhibition center American English (=a large building for holding exhibitions)The exhibition will be held in the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham.an exhibition hallThere’s a large exhibition hall on the ground floor.an exhibition stand (=a stand for showing things at an exhibition)He took up his position at the exhibition stand.exhibition space (=space where exhibitions can be held)The building provides 125,000 square metres of exhibition space in 12 halls.an exhibition venue (=a place where exhibitions can be held)We are still looking for suitable exhibition venues. THESAURUSexhibition an event at which a collection of paintings, interesting objects etc are shown to the public for a period of timeAll the photographs in the exhibition are for sale.The Great Outdoors Exhibition is a great place to find out about new outdoors activities.show an exhibition. Show is less formal than exhibition. It can be used about small events as well as big public onesThe artist is preparing a show at the Museum of Modern Art.He is putting on a one-man show in a local gallery. a trade showthe London Motor Show at Earl’s Courtexhibit American English an exhibitionan exhibit of Western paintings and sculpturesfair an event at which people or businesses show or sell their products, which is often not open to the publicthe Frankfurt Book Fair for publishers and the mediaexposition a large and important public event at which people or businesses show or sell their products177 galleries from nineteen countries will take part in the Chicago International Art Exposition.
Examples from the Corpus
exhibition• For example, I just returned from an exhibition and wrote a 6,000 word report in one burst in my hotel room.• An exhibition of Bernard Lavier's latest sculptures can be seen until the middle of June.• Electrical supplies and additional lighting can be booked for exhibition purposes.• Have you seen the O'Keefe exhibition yet?• Many of the photographs on exhibition were taken by artists who worked primarily in other media.• Throughout its day at Pollock and Searby's Mill Lane premises the exhibition was visited by company staff.• But pleasure, and intellectual challenge, is in response to individual installations rather than to the exhibition as a whole.• The exhibition of works by Hans Memling opens next week.• Science follows immediately, and the students quickly gather in groups to work on their exhibition in this area.exhibition of• an exhibition of Impressionist painters• She never agreed to the public exhibition of her sculptures while she was still alive.on exhibition• A collection of rare books is on exhibition at the city library.From Longman Business Dictionaryexhibitionex‧hi‧bi‧tion /ˌeksəˈbɪʃən/ noun [countable] especially British EnglishMARKETING a public event where businesses and other organizations show their products and services so that people can go and see themExhibitions and trade shows are expensive but good ways to promote a message or an image.the Expo 99 exhibition → trade exhibition 