proprietary

1 of 2

noun

plural proprietaries
1
: one that possesses, owns, or holds exclusive right to something
specifically : proprietor sense 1
2
: something that is used, produced, or marketed under exclusive legal right of the inventor or maker
specifically : a drug (such as a patent medicine) that is protected by secrecy, patent, or copyright against free competition as to name, product, composition, or process of manufacture
3
: a business secretly owned by and run as a cover for an intelligence organization

proprietary

2 of 2

adjective

1
: of, relating to, or characteristic of an owner or title holder
proprietary rights
2
: used, made, or marketed by one having the exclusive legal right
a proprietary process
proprietary software
3
: privately owned and managed and run as a profit-making organization
a proprietary clinic

Did you know?

A proprietary process is a manufacturing process that others are forbidden to use, and a proprietary trademark is a name that only the owner can use. Legal rights of this kind are ensured by copyrights and patents. After a certain period of time, inventions and processes lose their legal protection, cease to be proprietary, and enter the "public domain", meaning that everyone can use them freely. Baseball fans often take a proprietary attitude toward their favorite team—that is, they behave more or less as if they own it, even though the only thing they may own is the right to yell from a bleacher seat till the end of a game.

Examples of proprietary in a Sentence

Adjective By allowing less favorable results to remain buried, the agency puts proprietary interests ahead of the public interest, and doctors and the public come to believe prescription drugs are better than they are. That should stop. Marcia Angell, New York Review of Books, 8 June 2006
It is a proprietary faith: no one better tell me what to do with my own land. Lance Morrow, Time, 11 Sept. 2000
Many veterans have adopted a proprietary attitude toward the war, and they can get a bit belligerent about it. Nicholas Proffitt, New York Times Book Review, 21 May 1989
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
The brand's proprietary peptide adds an extra layer of protection, helping to reduce protein loss and maintain strength. Erin Parker, Allure, 3 Jan. 2025 Taco Bell Crispy Five-Cheese Roach Cantina Made in partnership with Taco Bell, the Crispy Five-Cheese Roach Cantina is slathered in a hot-and-sweet queso-rancho dip mixed with our proprietary roach glue. Charlie Dektar, The New Yorker, 2 Jan. 2025 Transportation has many buzzwords, acronyms, and proprietary terms like any industry. William Roberson, Forbes, 31 Dec. 2024 In interviews, several current and former insurance employees from multiple companies said that they were required to prioritize the proprietary guidelines their company used, even if their own clinical judgment pointed in the opposite direction. Maya Miller, ProPublica, 31 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for proprietary 

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English propietarie, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin propietarius, from Late Latin, adjective — see proprietary entry 2

Adjective

Late Latin proprietarius, from Latin proprietas property — more at property

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1589, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of proprietary was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near proprietary

Cite this Entry

“Proprietary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/proprietary. Accessed 7 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

proprietary

1 of 2 noun
pro·​pri·​etary
p(r)ə-ˈprī-ə-ˌter-ē
plural proprietaries

proprietary

2 of 2 adjective
1
a
: of or relating to a proprietor
proprietary rights
b
: resembling that of a proprietor
a proprietary pride in their hometown
2
: made and sold by one having the exclusive right to manufacture and sell
a proprietary drug
3
: privately owned and managed
a proprietary nursing home

Medical Definition

proprietary

1 of 2 noun
plural proprietaries
: something that is used, produced, or marketed under exclusive legal right of the inventor or maker
specifically : a drug (as a patent medicine) that is protected by secrecy, patent, or copyright against free competition as to name, product, composition, or process of manufacture

proprietary

2 of 2 adjective
1
: used, made, or marketed by one having the exclusive legal right
a proprietary drug
2
: privately owned and managed and run as a profit-making organization
a proprietary clinic

Legal Definition

proprietary

1 of 2 noun
plural proprietaries
1
: something that is used, produced, or marketed under exclusive legal right of the inventor or maker
specifically : a drug (as a patent medicine) that is protected by secrecy, patent, or copyright against free competition as to name, product, composition, or process of manufacture
2
: a business secretly owned by and run as a cover for an intelligence operation

proprietary

2 of 2 adjective
1
a
: held as property of a private owner
b
: of, relating to, or characteristic of a proprietor
proprietary rights
2
: used, made, or marketed by one having the exclusive legal right
a proprietary process
3
: privately owned and managed and run as a profit-making organization
a proprietary insurer
a proprietary clinic
4
: of or relating to the acts of a municipality which profit or benefit the municipality and for which it is answerable in negligence
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