| 释义 |
> as lemmasletters patent letters patent n. (also in 14th cent. †lettre patent) Originally: an open letter or document (see quot. 1891) issued by a monarch or government to record a contract, authorize or command an action, or confer a privilege, right, office, title, or property. In later use esp.: such a document which grants for a set period the sole right to make, use, or sell some process, invention, or commodity. Cf. patent n. 3.< |