Maybe "exponential" means "big" to non-math people. Years ago in a writing class I took, English majors kept using "hyperbolic" to mean "exaggerated". That was hard to parse for this physicist.

They arrive there from two different base words (which share an origin): Hyperbole vs hyperbola.

https://uselessetymology.com/2017/11/12/the-etymology-of-hyp...

https://www.etymonline.com/word/hyperbola