as in patents
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 copyrights
The next three points argue for limitations to patents and copyrights.
—
Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 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
When Bieber sold his back catalog, Recognition took over publishing copyrights and master recordings, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
—Jay Peters, The Verge, 13 Apr. 2026
The company’s catalog includes more than 19,000 copyrights and master recordings including songs written and recorded by Beyonce, Miley Cyrus, One Direction, Christopher Cross, Drake, Joan Jett, Lewis Capaldi, Run the Jewels, SWV, and more.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 26 Mar. 2026
That framework should also ensure that children are protected, censorship is prevented, copyrights are respected, and communities are safeguarded.
—Arpan Lobo, Freep.com, 16 Mar. 2026
After Pratt’s sentencing, Foster and several of the victims said the copyrights issue was an important and overlooked part of his plea agreement and sentence.
—Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
How women directors affect other forms of innovation – such as copyrights, trade secrets and first-mover advantage – remains unclear.
—Stephen J. Smulowitz, The Conversation, 13 Feb. 2026
Disney has long lobbied Congress to extend copyrights to keep its characters out of the public domain.
—Stephen Humphries, Christian Science Monitor, 31 Dec. 2025
Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 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
When Bieber sold his back catalog, Recognition took over publishing copyrights and master recordings, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
—Jay Peters, The Verge, 13 Apr. 2026
The company’s catalog includes more than 19,000 copyrights and master recordings including songs written and recorded by Beyonce, Miley Cyrus, One Direction, Christopher Cross, Drake, Joan Jett, Lewis Capaldi, Run the Jewels, SWV, and more.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 26 Mar. 2026
That framework should also ensure that children are protected, censorship is prevented, copyrights are respected, and communities are safeguarded.
—Arpan Lobo, Freep.com, 16 Mar. 2026
After Pratt’s sentencing, Foster and several of the victims said the copyrights issue was an important and overlooked part of his plea agreement and sentence.
—Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
How women directors affect other forms of innovation – such as copyrights, trade secrets and first-mover advantage – remains unclear.
—Stephen J. Smulowitz, The Conversation, 13 Feb. 2026
Disney has long lobbied Congress to extend copyrights to keep its characters out of the public domain.
—Stephen Humphries, Christian Science Monitor, 31 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for copyrights
patents
Noun
-
Viture further claims similar patents have have been rejected in China, and that Xreal’s patent adds only minor, appearance-level changes rather than true optical innovation.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
20 Jan. 2026
-
After all, patents do temporarily block rival companies from introducing copycat products to compete against the earlier inventor and patent holder.—
David J. Kappos,
Fortune,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Copyrights.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copyrights. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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