trademark
Americannoun
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trademarks
plural
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any name, symbol, figure, letter, word, or mark adopted and used by a manufacturer or merchant in order to designate specific goods and to distinguish them from those manufactured or sold by others. A trademark is proprietary and is usually registered with the Patent and Trademark Office to assure its exclusive use by its owner or licensee.
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a distinctive mark or feature particularly characteristic of or identified with a person or thing (often used attributively).
her trademark wit and sarcasm.
verb (used with object)
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trademarks,
present (3rd person singular)
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trademarked,
past participle, past
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trademarking
present participle
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to stamp or otherwise place a trademark designation upon.
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to register the trademark of.
noun
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the name or other symbol used to identify the goods produced by a particular manufacturer or distributed by a particular dealer and to distinguish them from products associated with competing manufacturers or dealers. A trademark that has been officially registered and is therefore legally protected is known as a Registered Trademark
-
any distinctive sign or mark of the presence of a person or animal
verb
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to label with a trademark
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to register as a trademark
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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trademarksimple
-
trademarkssimple
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have trademarkedperfect
-
has trademarkedperfect
-
am trademarkingprogressive
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are trademarkingprogressive
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is trademarkingprogressive
-
have been trademarkingperfect progressive
-
has been trademarkingperfect progressive
Past
-
trademarkedsimple
-
had trademarkedperfect
-
was trademarkingprogressive
-
were trademarkingprogressive
-
had been trademarkingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of trademark
Explanation
A trademark is a distinctive feature of something or someone, and to trademark is to brand something, especially in a legal sense. You know how a comedian often has a particular joke she's famous for? That's her trademark. A trademark is something specific to a person that can be used to identify her. The legal sense of trademark is an official representation of a business or product that only they can legally use — like the Nike swoosh or their motto "Just do it."
Vocabulary lists containing trademark
Economics
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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.
See Examples For:
A trademark header came off Bogle for Leeds' second and then showed other side of his game to finish calmly on the floor for the hosts' third.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Of course, Na is toying with his audience’s show me anticipation, while plying his trademark humor about rural sensibilities and desperate needling behavior.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
His trademark flourishes included walls of windows and built-in furniture.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
The British adventurer makes her acrobatic moves against a background of realistic graphics, complete with her trademark sarcastic quips.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
Fadi read that Clive’s trademark photography style was “capturing the essence of human diversity, cultures, struggles, and joy.”
From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai
The album is loaded with Anthrax trademarks — serrated, crunchy riffs, soaring lead vocals, bludgeoning beats, and scorching guitar — but there are also galactic noise effects, angular song structures and atypical chord configurations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
And where Amanda, confronted with a case that bears the well-publicized trademarks of the Whisper Man—as well as details never revealed in the press—is forced to go to the recalcitrant Pete for help.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
The outlet also said that Molly Tea and its affiliated firms had applied for multiple trademarks that were rejected by the China National Intellectual Property Administration.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
The director’s trademarks haven’t been this thrilling in years, with Janusz Kamiński’s camera doing tricks that rival his most awe-inspiring work, and John Williams’ score ratcheting the tension in chase scenes and action sequences.
From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026
Such cooperation was one of the important trademarks of Homo sapiens, and gave it a crucial edge over other human species.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
The marketing takeaway: Protecting trademarked IP is critical.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The European Court of Justice confirmed that decision, saying the name OpenAI was not sufficiently distinctive to be trademarked.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
Matthew McConaughey trademarked his taffylike delivery of “Alright alright alright.”
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
The nonprofit recently trademarked its name and is in the process of copyrighting its livestream.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2026
The fast-food vendor may own a trademarked phrase or jingle that the public learns to associate with his product.
From The Public Domain Enclosing the Commons of the Mind by James Boyle
EU regulations do not allow trademarking a brand that simply describes a product or service, as that would mean competitors could no longer use those terms in their advertising.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
But Hopkins didn’t have the name recognition to justify trademarking “Cocky.”
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
Matthew McConaughey is trademarking himself to fight AI fakes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
“Somebody probably already beat me to that,” Sanders said of trademarking “hot garbage.”
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 10, 2023
The name was chosen because of difficulties Intel had in trademarking a number.
From The Jargon File, Version 4.2.2, 20 Aug 2000 by Guy L. Steele
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.
