as in patent
the legal right to be the only one to reproduce, publish, and sell a book, musical recording, etc., for a certain period of time
His family still holds the copyright to his songs. laws that protect copyrights
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Recent Examples of copyright
Conway was just as skeptical of McMillan’s copyright infringement claim.
—
Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 21 Apr. 2026
Clips of the movie on X are still being taken down through its copyright takedown process.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 16 Apr. 2026
Mickey may be old enough to fall out of copyright, but trademark rights are different and forever.
—Mark Lane, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
This song has already been a hit with me, this is in my publishing company and this is obviously going to be one of my most important copyrights.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 15 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for copyright
Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 21 Apr. 2026
Clips of the movie on X are still being taken down through its copyright takedown process.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 16 Apr. 2026
Mickey may be old enough to fall out of copyright, but trademark rights are different and forever.
—Mark Lane, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026
This song has already been a hit with me, this is in my publishing company and this is obviously going to be one of my most important copyrights.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 15 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for copyright
Recent Examples of Synonyms for copyright
patent
Noun
-
The Charter closes by discouraging the creation of new categories of IP law or extending patent and copyright terms.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
24 Apr. 2026
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The process of making black garlic is often attributed to Japanese scientist Hamasuke Hamano, who spent a decade refining a method to make garlic more palatable before securing a patent in 2004.—
Mavra Javed,
The Conversation,
24 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Copyright.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copyright. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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