of or relating to copyrights.
Also copyrighted. protected by copyright.
A copyright is a document that gives the ownership rights over artistic work, like songs or stories. If you don't get a copyright for your brilliant new novel, someone could adapt it into a movie without paying you a dime. Copyright means exactly what it sounds like: the right to make copies of something. If you copyright a song, a singer will to have to pay you to record it. Usually, copyright only lasts for a certain number of years. In the U.S. when a book or song has had a copyright for more than 75 years, that expires and it becomes "public domain," which means nobody owns the rights to it anymore.
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The site, which provides free access to books and scholarly articles, had faced global accusations of pirating copyright material.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
Last year, Disney sent a cease-and-desist letter to Character.AI, alleging copyright infringement of its well-known characters, including Elsa, Moana, Peter Parker and Darth Vader.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
The representative said Nadella had spoken about broad changes in how people find information, and “those observations should not be confused with conclusions about copyright questions before the Court.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
Axel Scheffler said AI pictures are "a breach of copyright" and lose their charm when compared to the hand-drawn originals.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
This idea long precedes the legal claim to authorial copyright, which did not exist in British law until 1710, and was established later elsewhere.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
And celebrities with valuable intellectual property rights, such as copyrights from the Reiners’ many film and television properties, tend to establish trusts.
From Salon ● Dec. 25, 2025
The deal comes amid reports Disney lawyers sent Google a cease-and-desist letter on Wednesday accusing the tech firm of infringing its copyrights "on a massive scale".
From BBC ● Dec. 11, 2025
They alleged that Cox’s subscribers infringed their copyrights in sound recordings and musical compositions by copying and distributing them via BitTorrent and other networks.
From Slate ● Nov. 28, 2025
Sora 2 includes automated filters designed to prevent users from violating copyrights, according to Shetty.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2025
But when Fabyan printed the pamphlets, he claimed the copyrights for himself.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
But Olly - who has dealt with these before when he has mistakenly posted copyrighted material - says they are usually easy to deal with, and "you can easily tell the difference".
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
In May, multiple publishers, including Hachette, Cengage, Elsevier and Turow, sued Meta in a New York court for allegedly stealing copyrighted content.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
The Justice Department’s letter spells out the government’s position that the use of copyrighted materials to train AI models doesn’t violate copyright law.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
BBC Newsbeat has obtained the filings, first reported by video game website Kotaku, external, demanding Microsoft-owned site GitHub and chat app Discord turn over the user details of accounts thought to be sharing "copyrighted material".
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
It was copyrighted 1972 by the Esso company.
From "Paper Towns" by John Green
She said she had been running her own copyrighting business, but found herself struggling while devoting thousands of hours getting ready for her legal fight.
From BBC ● May 10, 2023
On the other hand, that can also be an advantage, said a 30-year-old pilot who goes by the name Makarena and worked in copyrighting before the war.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2023
This idea of thin copyright, and the idea that you might be copyrighting the curation of all of these different elements together.
From The Verge ● Sep. 15, 2021
Senior manager of LHI Sonia Mora said the county is in the process of copyrighting Abuelina and her family members to ensure they are not used for commercial purposes.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 8, 2021
Yes, I see now what she was copyrighting that child for.
From Christian Science by Mark Twain
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
