How can you determine if a function is exponential or not without graphing?

To determine if a function is exponential without graphing, check if it can be expressed in the form ( f(x) = a \cdot b^x ), where ( a ) is a constant and ( b ) is a positive constant base. Additionally, examine the behavior of the function for different values of ( x ); if the rate of change is proportional to the value of the function itself, then it is likely exponential. You can also look for a constant ratio of successive function values for equal intervals of ( x ).