patent cliff
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of patent cliff
First recorded in 2005–10
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The good news is that we knew the patent cliff was coming,” Chief Financial Officer David Denton told Barron’s.
From Barron's ● May 5, 2026
A patent cliff is what happens when one or a few blockbuster drugs lose protection and cheaper copies flood in, knocking a hole in revenue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 6, 2026
As Citi’s Davis puts it, “This will be the biggest patent cliff of all time.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 18, 2025
It was originally thought that the biosimilars would exact a lot of pain like the patent cliff with other drugs.
From Forbes ● Sep. 4, 2014
The company's "patent cliff" will become more daunting in March, when $1 billion-a-year osteoporosis drug Evista faces U.S. generics.
From Reuters ● Jan. 30, 2014
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.
