trademark
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a name, symbol, or design that a company uses to identify its products and stop others from copying them.
n.a legally registered sign, design, or expression which identifies products or services of a particular source from those of others.
Simple“The company's famous logo is a registered trademark that no one else can use.”
In context“The corporation filed a lawsuit alleging that the competitor's new logo was a clear infringement of their established trademark.”
UsageOften used with the verbs 'register', 'infringe', or 'protect'.
- 02 C1 Advanced
adj.describing something that is very typical of a certain person.
adj.serving as a distinctive or identifying characteristic of a person or thing.
Simple“He walked onto the stage wearing his trademark leather jacket.”
In context“The comedian delivered the punchline with his trademark dry wit, prompting immediate laughter from the audience.”
- 03 C1 Advanced
v.to officially register a name or symbol so that other people cannot use it.
v.to register a particular name, design, or phrase as a trademark to secure exclusive legal rights.
Simple“They decided to trademark the new slogan before launching the advertising campaign.”
In context“The startup moved quickly to trademark their unique software architecture name to prevent copycats in the emerging market.”
UsageThis is a transitive verb and requires a direct object.
“Mapping scents also could be helpful in quantifying flavors of foods or trademarking particular aromas like the scents of brand-name laundry detergents.”
“Wham-O now owns the registered trademark for both the Boogie and Boogie Board names.”
From trade + mark.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.