Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the relations between emotion regulation (reappraisal and suppression), discrete emotions and emotional exhaustion among nurses. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional design was used with 168 nurses in South Korea. Structural equation modeling and path analysis were conducted for analysis. Findings Reappraisal correlated positively with enjoyment and pride and negatively with anxiety, anger and frustration, whereas suppression correlated negatively with enjoyment and positively with anxiety and frustration. Moreover, reappraisal was negatively associated with emotional exhaustion, whereas suppression was positively associated with it. Enjoyment was negatively related to emotional exhaustion, and anger and frustration were positively related to it. Enjoyment and frustration mediated the relation between emotion regulation and emotional exhaustion. Findings demonstrate the potentially beneficial influences of reappraisal as well as harmful impacts of suppression in the nursing context. Research limitations/implications This paper expands research on nurses’ emotion management by applying Gross’s emotion regulation framework rather than Hochschild’s emotional labor framework. The mediating result suggests that not only nurses but also hospital administrators and nurse managers should pay attention to nurses’ emotional experiences to improve nurses’ well-being and ultimately better nursing practice. This research can provide the basis for developing practical interventions to efficiently regulate nurses’ emotions. Originality/value This is the first study exploring the mediating role of emotions in the link between nurses’ emotion regulation and emotional exhaustion. It contributes to interdisciplinary research by integrating perspectives from psychological emotion and emotion regulation research into the nursing field.