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  • patent office
    patent office
    noun
    a governmental agency that administers and regulates patents and trademarks, in the U.S. forming a division of the Department of Commerce.
  • Patent Office
    Patent Office
    noun
    a government department that issues patents

patent office

American  

noun

  1. (often initial capital letters) a governmental agency that administers and regulates patents and trademarks, in the U.S. forming a division of the Department of Commerce.


Patent Office British  
/ ˈpætənt /

noun

  1.  Pat. Off.  a government department that issues patents

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

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And later, in 1853, the U.S. patent office denied Hunt’s belated application for his 1830s sewing-machine invention.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 12, 2026

Attorney Kevin Yorn, who represents McConaughey, said the aim of filing with the patent office was "to make sure that our clients have the same kind of protections that their businesses have."

From Barron's Jan. 15, 2026

After lower courts sided with the patent office, Thaler took his appeal to the Supreme Court, where a panel of judges unanimously dismissed the case.

From Seattle Times Dec. 20, 2023

The largest source of data in C4, by some margin, is the U.S. patent office.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 16, 2023

Out of money, he took a temporary position at the Swiss patent office, a far cry from the assistantship at a university that he wanted.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

Patent Office ruled—more than once—that Woods was the prior inventor.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 18, 2026

Patent Office for that spelling, which is still pending.

From Seattle Times Apr. 13, 2024

Patent Office agricultural records from 1843 to 1845 to show how the pathogen first spread across the northeast United States before causing the devastating famine in Ireland in 1845.

From Science Daily Feb. 15, 2024

It named the father of the bride, Elisha Foote, and described him as the head of the Appeal Board at the Patent Office.

From Scientific American Nov. 9, 2023

As he continued east on F, he approached two of Washington’s greatest landmarks: to the left, the huge marble Patent Office.

From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson

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