patent

[ pat-nt peyt-; especially British peyt-nt ]

noun

1. the exclusive right granted by a government to an inventor to manufacture, use, or sell an invention for a certain number of years.
2. an invention or process protected by an exclusive right to manufacture, use, or sell it.
3. an official document conferring on the inventor the exclusive right to manufacture, use, or sell an invention; letters patent.
4. Law. the instrument by which the government of the United States conveys the legal fee-simple title to public land.
5. patent leather ( def ).

adjective

1. protected by an exclusive right given to an inventor to manufacture, use, or sell an invention; patented:

   a patent cooling device.

2. relating to, concerned with, or dealing with the granting of exclusive rights to sell or manufacture something, especially inventions:

   a patent attorney;

   patent law.

3. (of a right, privilege, etc.) conferred by a patent.
4. holding an exclusive right to manufacture, use, or sell an invention.
5. readily open to notice or observation; evident; obvious:

   She turned her nose up at me in a patent breach of good manners.

   Synonyms: unconcealed, conspicuous, palpable, clear

   Antonyms: hidden, obscure, dim

6. made of patent leather:

   patent shoes.

7. (of a medication) sold without a prescription and usually protected by an exclusive legal right to manufacture:

   patent remedies;

   patent drugs.

8. lying open; not enclosed or shut in:

   a patent field.

9. (of a doorway, passage, or the like) open.
10. Chiefly Botany. expanded or spreading.
11. Medicine/Medical. (of a duct or passage in the body) open or unobstructed.
12. Phonetics. open, in various degrees, to the passage of the breath stream.

verb (used with object)

1. to take out a patent on; obtain the exclusive rights to (an invention, process, etc.) by a patent.
2. to originate and establish as one's own.
3. Metallurgy. to heat and quench (wire) so as to prepare for cold-drawing.
4. Law. to grant (public land) by a patent.

patent

/ ˈpeɪtənt; ˈpætənt /

noun

1. 1. a government grant to an inventor assuring him the sole right to make, use, and sell his invention for a limited period
   2. a document conveying such a grant
2. an invention, privilege, etc, protected by a patent
3. 1. an official document granting a right
   2. any right granted by such a document
4. in the US
   1. a grant by the government of title to public lands
   2. the instrument by which such title is granted
   3. the land so granted
5. a sign that one possesses a certain quality

adjective

1. open or available for inspection (esp in the phrases letters patent, patent writ )
2. ˈpeɪtənt obvious

   their scorn was patent to everyone

3. concerning protection, appointment, etc, of or by a patent or patents
4. proprietary
5. (esp of a bodily passage or duct) being open or unobstructed
6. biology spreading out widely

   patent branches

7. (of plate glass) ground and polished on both sides

verb

1. to obtain a patent for
2. (in the US) to grant (public land or mineral rights) by a patent
3. metallurgy to heat (a metal) above a transformation temperature and cool it at a rate that allows cold working

Usage

The pronunciation ˈpætənt is heard in letters patent and Patent Office and is the usual US pronunciation for all senses. In Britain ˈpætənt is sometimes heard for senses 1, 2 and 3, but ˈpeɪtənt is commoner and is regularly used in collocations like patent leather

Derived Forms

• ˈpatentable, adjective
• ˌpatentaˈbility, noun

Other Words From

• pat·ent·a·ble adjective
• pat·ent·a·bil·i·ty [pat-nt-, uh, -, bil, -i-tee], noun
• pat·ent·a·bly adverb
• pa·tent·ly adverb
• non·pat·ent·a·bil·i·ty noun
• non·pat·ent·a·ble adjective
• non·pat·ent·ed adjective
• non·pat·ent·ly adverb
• pre·pat·ent noun verb (used with object)
• un·pat·ent adjective
• un·pat·ent·a·bil·i·ty noun
• un·pat·ent·a·ble adjective
• un·pat·ent·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of patent¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; (adjective) Middle English, from Latin patent-, stem of patēns “open, standing open,” present participle of patēre “to stand open, lie open”; (noun) Middle English, short for letters patent, translation of Medieval Latin litterae patentēs “open letters”

Word History and Origins

Origin of patent¹

C14: via Old French from Latin patēre to lie open; n use, short for letters patent, from Medieval Latin litterae patentes letters lying open (to public inspection)

Synonym Study

See apparent.

Example Sentences

He disclosed the immunological innovations to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization, which has applied for patents to protect the intellectual property.

From Science Daily

Beyond its role in the US-China trade and tech war, its responsibilities include patent approvals, publishing economic data, and conducting the US census.

From BBC

At Amazon’s studios, she sits in a bouclé armchair on her podcast set, dressed like a demure interviewer: patent leather loafers, cuffed jeans, a sweater set, a string of pearls.

From Los Angeles Times

Then, these same brands dutifully patent an expensive snake oil antidote for poisoning you.

From Los Angeles Times

New drugs, such as tirzepatide, are on the way and the pharmaceutical companies will lose their legal protections – patents – meaning other companies can make their own, cheaper versions.

From BBC

Related Words

• charter
• concession
• license
• privilege
• protection