Trademarking

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The act of obtaining legal protection for a unique identifier that distinguishes products or services in commerce encompasses the registration process of a brand logo or name
2. This process secures exclusive rights to a distinctive mark, preventing unauthorized usage in the market while identifying goods or services
3. The procedure through which exclusive rights are granted for a unique sign or identifier, ensuring it differentiates products or services while preventing misuse by others

Etymology: "Trademarking" is the present participle and gerund of "trademark," so its history is that of the verb it comes from. The noun "trademark" is a compound of "trade" and "mark," and the two parts carry their original senses intact. "Mark" goes back to a physical sign or impression, a way of showing ownership or origin on goods, while "trade" refers to buying and selling. Put together, a trademark is simply a mark used to show which trader's goods are which. The verb built on this compound follows the usual English pattern: a noun becomes a verb ("to trademark" a name or logo), and the -ing forms name the ongoing act of doing so. Registering a brand name or logo so that it is legally protected is the modern sense that the verb now carries. The compound itself is transparent, so the word's meaning has changed little from its component parts to today's legal usage.

Synonyms: registering, branding