exhibits

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of exhibit.

   The gallery rotates its exhibits every few months.

   Lawyers labeled the exhibits before presenting them to the jury.

   Note

   A plural that serves two worlds. In the gallery, exhibits are the objects on show. In the courtroom, they are articles formally entered as evidence. Where exhibit means a whole public showing, the plural can mean several such shows, so context decides between objects and events. The same spelling is also the present-tense verb, so "the museum exhibits" can begin either a noun phrase or a full clause.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of exhibit.

   The patient exhibits clear signs of recovery after surgery.

   This alloy exhibits unusual magnetic properties at low temperatures.

   Note

   The -s form that a singular subject takes: the patient exhibits, the alloy exhibits. It usually wants an object. When that object is a quality, such as signs, properties or a tendency, exhibits means "demonstrates" rather than "puts on show." It can also stand without an object for someone who shows work publicly (she exhibits at the fair every spring). The spelling it shares with the plural noun is a coincidence of form, not a different word.

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