copyright

¹copy·right

noun \-ˌrīt\

Definition of COPYRIGHT

: the exclusive legal right to reproduce, publish, sell, or distribute the matter and form of something (as a literary, musical, or artistic work)

Examples of COPYRIGHT

1. His family still holds the copyright to his songs.
2. The book is under copyright.

First Known Use of COPYRIGHT

1735

Other Publishing Terms

annotate, dreadful, emend, expurgate, factoid, jump, lobster shift, redaction, referee

Rhymes with COPYRIGHT

acolyte, aconite, aerolite, Ammonite, Amorite, amosite, anchorite, andesite, anthracite, antiwhite, apartheid, appetite, arsenite, azurite, Bakelite, bedlamite, Benthamite, biotite, bipartite, black-and-white, blatherskite, bleacherite, bring to light, Brooklynite, bryophyte, calamite, Canaanite, candlelight, Carmelite, Castroite, catamite, cellulite, cenobite, chalcocite, chestnut blight, Chinese white, columbite, coprolite, cryolite, crystallite, disinvite, disunite, divine right, dolerite, dolomite, dynamite, ebonite, epiphyte, eremite, erudite, expedite, extradite, featherlight, fight-or-flight, fly-by-night, gelignite, geophyte, gesundheit, gigabyte, Gilsonite, Hashemite, hematite, hemocyte, hessonite, Hitlerite, Houstonite, hug-me-tight, Hutterite, hyalite, Ibsenite, impolite, inner light, Ishmaelite, Isle of Wight, Israelite, Jacobite, Jerseyite, Josephite, kilobyte, kimberlite, laborite, lazulite, leading light, Leavisite, Leninite, leukocyte, lily-white, localite, lymphocyte, macrophyte, magnetite, malachite, manganite, Marcionite, Masonite, megabyte, Mennonite, Minorite, Moabite, Mr. Right, muscovite, Muscovite, Nazirite, neophyte, oocyte, open sight, out-of-sight, overbite, overflight, overnight, oversight, overwrite, parasite, patent right, perovskite, phagocyte, pilot light, plebiscite, proselyte, Puseyite, pyrrhotite, recondite, reunite, rhyolite, running light, Saint Paulite, saprolite, satellite, Scottish rite, second sight, see the light, self-ignite, serve one right, shergottite, socialite, sodalite, sodomite, spider mite, Stagirite, Sydneyite, taconite, tanzanite, terabyte, time-of-flight, traffic light, transfinite, transvestite, tripartite, troglodyte, Trotskyite, Ulsterite, ultralight, underwrite, urbanite, vigil light, Wahhabite, water right, water sprite, watertight, Wycliffite, xerophyte, yesternight, zoophyte

²copyright

transitive verb

Definition of COPYRIGHT

: to secure a copyright on

— copy·right·able \-ˌrī-tə-bəl\ adjective

Examples of COPYRIGHT

1. He has copyrighted all of his plays.

First Known Use of COPYRIGHT

circa 1806

Other Publishing Terms

annotate, dreadful, emend, expurgate, factoid, jump, lobster shift, redaction, referee

³copyright

adjective

Definition of COPYRIGHT

: secured by copyright

Examples of COPYRIGHT

1. The copyright date is 2005.

First Known Use of COPYRIGHT

1870

Other Publishing Terms

annotate, dreadful, emend, expurgate, factoid, jump, lobster shift, redaction, referee

copyright

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Exclusive right to reproduce, publish, or sell an original work of authorship. It protects from unauthorized copying any published or unpublished work that is fixed in a tangible medium (including a book or manuscript, musical score or recording, script or dramatic production, painting or sculpture, or blueprint or building). It does not protect matters such as an idea, process, or system. Protection in the U.S. now extends for the life of the creator plus 70 years after his or her death. Works made for hire are now protected for a maximum of 95 years from the date of publication or 120 years from the date of the creation of the work. In 1988 the U.S. joined the Bern Convention, an agreement that governs international copyright. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act, adopted in the U.S. in 1998, expanded owners' control over digital forms of their creations and penalized persons who sought to evade technological shields (such as encryption) for copyrighted material. See also intellectual property; patent; trademark.