copyright

1 of 3

noun

copy·​right ˈkä-pē-ˌrīt How to pronounce copyright (audio)
: the exclusive legal right to reproduce, publish, sell, or distribute the matter and form of something (such as a literary, musical, or artistic work)
His family still holds the copyright to his songs.

copyright

2 of 3

verb

copyrighted; copyrighting; copyrights

transitive verb

: to secure a copyright on
He has copyrighted all of his plays.
copyrightable adjective

copyright

3 of 3

adjective

: secured by copyright
copyright songs

Examples of copyright in a Sentence

Noun His family still holds the copyright to his songs. The book is under copyright. Verb He has copyrighted all of his plays. Adjective The copyright date is 2005.
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.
Noun
Developments on the suit moved slowly, but the case has now been discontinued two months after it was ruled that Trump did, in fact, infringe on Grant’s copyright. Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 21 Nov. 2024 Adobe stresses that its generative AI is trained only on data that the company has a right to use or that is in the public domain and therefore does not violate copyright laws. John Kell, Fortune, 20 Nov. 2024
Verb
Remember that piece of art that won a prize at the Colorado State Fair but couldn’t be copyrighted because it was made with Midjourney? Angela Watercutter, WIRED, 4 Oct. 2024 After reconsideration of the application was again rejected by the office, Allen sued the Copyright Office, asking a federal court to decide if it could be copyrighted. Megan Poinski, Forbes, 2 Oct. 2024
Adjective
The New York Times sued OpenAI for copyright infringement in December. Robert Olsen, Forbes, 20 Nov. 2024 Soulja Boy is hitting back at Plies for filing a copyright lawsuit against him. Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 19 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for copyright 

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1735, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1806, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1870, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of copyright was in 1735

Dictionary Entries Near copyright

Cite this Entry

“Copyright.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/copyright. Accessed 8 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

copyright

1 of 2 noun
copy·​right -ˌrīt How to pronounce copyright (audio)
: the legal right to be the only one to reproduce, publish, or sell the contents and form of a literary, musical, or artistic work
copyright adjective

copyright

2 of 2 verb
: to get a copyright on

Legal Definition

copyright

1 of 2 noun
copy·​right ˈkä-pē-ˌrīt How to pronounce copyright (audio)
: a person's exclusive right to reproduce, publish, or sell his or her original work of authorship (as a literary, musical, dramatic, artistic, or architectural work) see also common-law copyright, fair use at use sense 2, infringe, intellectual property at property, international copyright, original, public domain compare patent, trademark

Note: Copyrights are governed by the Copyright Act of 1976 contained in title 17 of the U.S. Code. The Act protects published or unpublished works that are fixed in a tangible medium of expression from which they can be perceived. The Act does not protect matters such as an idea, process, system, or discovery. Protection under the Act extends for the life of the creator of the work plus seventy years after his or her death. For works created before January 1, 1978, but not copyrighted or in the public domain, the copyright starts on January 1, 1978, and extends for the same period as for other works, but in any case will not expire before December 31, 2002. If a work is published on or before December 31, 2002, the copyright will not expire before December 31, 2047. The Act abolishes protection under common law, as well as any rights available under state statute, in favor of the rights available under the provisions of the Act, with certain exceptions.

copyright adjective

copyright

2 of 2 transitive verb
: to secure a copyright on
copyrightability
ˌkä-pē-ˌrī-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē
noun
copyrightable adjective
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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