proprietary

adjective

Definition of proprietarynext
as in exclusive
belonging to only one person, unit, or group and not used by or available to others The restaurant's proprietary recipe for barbecue sauce is only known to the head chef.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of proprietary Billboard on Tuesday also affirmed its goal to be transparent about what songs on its chart were made with AI, working with Luminate’s new proprietary AI detector to determine which songs that rank on its charts are made with the technology. — Corbin Bolies, Variety, 25 Aug. 2026 Poolside’s engineers will work on Nvidia’s open-source Nemotron models, which Nvidia hopes can rival leading Chinese open-weight systems from DeepSeek and Moonshot AI as well as proprietary models from OpenAI and Anthropic. — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026 Its proprietary bio-complex, made with peptides and vitamin B3, smooths, brightens, and firms. — Jenny Berg, Vogue, 24 Aug. 2026 Most of the people who sell their plasma tend to be under 35, unemployed, without a college degree, Black and male, according to a 2021 study based on two proprietary national surveys conducted between 2018 and 2021. — Cnn Staff, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for proprietary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for proprietary
exclusive
Adjective
  • In an exclusive statement sent to WWD, Hall expressed her admiration for the award-winning makeup artist and the creative behind the campaign.
    — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Her duties include reading slush-pile submissions, making coffee, and tending to the needs of high-profile guests during Platen’s many exclusive fêtes.
    — Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of exclusive

Browse Nearby Words

propping (up)
proprietary
proprieties
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Proprietary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/proprietary. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All