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: dim, hidden, obscure

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

• ˌpatentaˈbility, noun
• ˈpatentable, adjective

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

Because it’s a biological product, it can’t be patented or sold for a profit.

From Quartz

In the early days, it was very important to not publish so that we could get all of our patents, which is ultimately what value here is built on.

From Freakonomics

That September, he filed patent application 143,805, “Art of Compiling Statistics.”

From MIT Technology Review

The patent does not guarantee that Cansino’s vaccine will ultimately prove successful.

From Fortune

The patent application reflects a high level of technical sophistication.

From Fortune

Having received a patent on the technology in 1986, Hull founded 3D Systems to commercialize his discoveries.

From The Daily Beast

Last week, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said the Redskins name and logo should not have trademark protection.

From The Daily Beast

Snyder is appealing the decision by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and the team seems confident that it will win again.

From The Daily Beast

“Tesla will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology,” he wrote.

From The Daily Beast

The description in its entirety begins to read more like the storyline in Her than a real-life patent.

From The Daily Beast

Robert Fitzgerald received a patent in England for making salt water fresh.

From Project Gutenberg

I only draw your attention to the facts; which have been sufficiently patent to the world, whatever Lord Hartledon may think.

From Project Gutenberg

Papier maché buttons came in with Henry Clay's patent in 1778.

From Project Gutenberg

Ellis's patent boot studs to save the sole, and the Euknemida, or concave-convex fastening springs, are the latest novelties.

From Project Gutenberg

Before this patent was granted he had, however, given up the use of weights altogether and relied entirely upon springs.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• charter
• concession
• license
• privilege
• protection