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   patent

   noun

   • 1. a government authority or licence conferring a right or title for a set period, especially the sole right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention: "he took out a patent for an improved steam hammer"
   • 2. patent leather: "designs in a wide range of textures featuring super-chic patent, soft suede, or sophisticated nappa"

   adjective

   • 1. easily recognizable; obvious: "she was smiling with patent insincerity" Similar obviousclearplainevidentapparentmanifestself-evidentdistinctdefinitetransparentovertdiscerniblevisibleconspicuousblatantdownrightbarefacedflagrantpalpableglaringglaringly obviousundisguisedunconcealedunmistakableunequivocalunquestionableundeniableOpposite unobtrusiveinconspicuous
   • 2. (of a vessel, duct, or aperture) open and unobstructed; failing to close: "the patient is usually left with a patent vessel"
   • ▪ (of a parasitic infection) showing detectable parasites in the tissues or faeces: "there are a few recorded cases of patent infection in man"
   • 3. made and marketed under a patent; proprietary: "patent milk powder" Similar proprietarypatentedlicensedprotectedbrandedbrand-nameown-brandown-labeldesigner-label

   • 1. obtain a patent for (an invention): "an invention is not your own until it is patented"

   Word Origin late Middle English: from Old French, from Latin patent- ‘lying open’, from the verb patere. The noun sense is from letters patent.

   Derivatives

   • 1. patentability noun
   • 2. patentable adjective
   • 3. patentor noun

   Scrabble Points: 8

   • P

     3

   • A

     1

   • T

     1

   • E

     1

   • N

     1

   • T

     1

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