: 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
: 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.
Example Sentences
AdjectiveBy 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 2006It is a proprietary faith: no one better tell me what to do with my own land. Lance Morrow, Time, 11 Sept. 2000Many 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 The investors have a proprietary interest in the land. The computer comes with the manufacturer's proprietary software. “Merriam-Webster” is a proprietary name. The journalist tried to get access to proprietary information. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Specifically, the partnership will connect BlackRock’s proprietary investment software, known as Aladdin, to Coinbase Prime, a trading and custody service with 13,000 institutional customers. Steven Ehrlich, Forbes, 4 Aug. 2022 The company only uses proprietary software, integrating compositing and 3D work. Martin Dale, Variety, 9 June 2022 Broadus says her firm uses a proprietary software to find and vet just the right type of influencer for the job. Melissa Mahtani, CNN, 7 June 2022 From a business perspective, Petfolk is leveraging proprietary technology to make taking care of your pet seamless and easy, allowing the company to scale rapidly and cost effectively. Rachel King, Fortune, 28 Aug. 2022 Pfizer spokeswoman Pam Eisele said the company had not fully reviewed Moderna’s lawsuit, but the drugmaker was surprised by it, given that their vaccine is based on proprietary technology developed by both BioNTech and Pfizer. Tom Murphy, ajc, 26 Aug. 2022 These will be brought to life using Trioscope’s proprietary technology that fuses live-action performances and CG. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 25 Aug. 2022 Samsung suggests the performance bump comes from its own V-NAND and proprietary controller advancements. Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 24 Aug. 2022 But the real magic lies in the GHD’s proprietary Aeroprecis technology, which produces a precise and concentrated 75mph airflow. Marie Lodi, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Aug. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English propietarie, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin propietarius, from Late Latin, adjective — see proprietaryentry 2
Adjective
Late Latin proprietarius, from Latin proprietas property — more at property