proprietary

[ pruh-prahy-i-ter-ee ]

adjective

1. belonging to a proprietor.
2. being a proprietor; holding property:

   the proprietary class.

3. pertaining to property or ownership:

   proprietary wealth.

4. belonging or controlled as property.
5. (of a brand name, product, service, formula, etc.) protected by a patent, copyright, or trademark:

   proprietary drugs; a proprietary name; a proprietary logo; a proprietary blend of ingredients.

6. privately owned and operated for profit:

   proprietary hospitals.

noun

, plural pro·pri·e·tar·ies.

1. an owner or proprietor.
2. a body of proprietors.
3. American History. the grantee or owner, or one of the grantees or owners, of a proprietary colony.
4. ownership.
5. something owned, especially real estate.
6. a proprietary medicine.
7. Also called proprietary school. a school organized as a profit-making venture primarily to teach vocational skills or self-improvement techniques.

proprietary

/ prəˈpraɪɪtərɪ; -trɪ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or belonging to property or proprietors
2. privately owned and controlled
3. med of or denoting a drug or agent manufactured and distributed under a trade name Compare ethical

noun

1. med a proprietary drug or agent
2. a proprietor or proprietors collectively
3. 1. right to property
   2. property owned
4. Also calledlord proprietary (in Colonial America) an owner, governor, or grantee of a proprietary colony

Derived Forms

• proˈprietarily, adverb

Other Words From

• pro·pri·e·tar·i·ly [pr, uh, -prahy-i-, tair, -i-lee, -, prahy, -i-ter-], adverb
• nonpro·prie·tary adjective noun plural nonproprietaries

Word History and Origins

Origin of proprietary¹

1400–50; late Middle English (noun) < Medieval Latin proprietārius owner, noun use of Late Latin: of an owner, of ownership. See propriety, -ary

Word History and Origins

Origin of proprietary¹

C15: from Late Latin proprietārius an owner, from proprius one's own

Example Sentences

News uses a proprietary formula that incorporates a host of metrics to sort all manner of higher education institutions and programs.

From New York Times

This realizes what Joan Didion describes in her 2000 New Yorker essay about the “unusual bonding” and “proprietary intimacy” Stewart creates with us — her people, her consumers, her devourers.

From Salon

Any “proprietary information” uncovered during these investigations would not be subject to the Freedom of Information Act.

From Salon

Insurers use proprietary systems to calculate these costs, so you may also want to check with two or three other companies.

From Los Angeles Times

Results are then analyzed by Wave’s proprietary software.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• antidote
• drug
• elixir
• fix
• healing
• medication
• medicine
• panacea
• placebo
• quick fix
• recovery
• remedy
• treatment