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
Excerpted from The Power and the Glory by Jonathan Wilson, copyright © 2025 by Jonathan Wilson.
—
Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
The record companies accused the two AI platforms of massive copyright infringement by training their models on millions of unlicensed works from their catalogs.
—Ethan Millman, HollywoodReporter, 30 Oct. 2025
The result was captivating — so much so that Nosferatu persisted as a cult film even after a judge ordered all copies to be destroyed in a copyright dispute with the Stoker estate.
—Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
The production designer also used her own old family photos to ensure there wouldn’t be any snags in copyright clearance and licensing.
—Mara Reinstein, Architectural Digest, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for copyright
Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
The record companies accused the two AI platforms of massive copyright infringement by training their models on millions of unlicensed works from their catalogs.
—Ethan Millman, HollywoodReporter, 30 Oct. 2025
The result was captivating — so much so that Nosferatu persisted as a cult film even after a judge ordered all copies to be destroyed in a copyright dispute with the Stoker estate.
—Katie Rife, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
The production designer also used her own old family photos to ensure there wouldn’t be any snags in copyright clearance and licensing.
—Mara Reinstein, Architectural Digest, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for copyright
Recent Examples of Synonyms for copyright
patent
Noun
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The team has already developed a basic blueprint for this substance and applied for a patent.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Jan. 2026
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In other words, competition and patent protection work in concert to drive innovation and economic growth.—
David J. Kappos,
Fortune,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Copyright.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/copyright. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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