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adjective

proprietary

CEFR C2

owned and controlled exclusively, not freely available to others

In a sentence

Six example sentences with proprietary, each labelled with its topic.

  • The company kept its matching algorithm proprietary, licensing it to partners but never publishing a single line of code.

    Startups

  • Older camera bodies wrote images in a proprietary raw format that only the manufacturer's own software could open.

    Photography

  • The hospital's supplier sells a proprietary catheter coating that no competitor may reproduce until the underlying patent finally lapses.

    Medicine

  • The console used a proprietary memory card, so players could not save games onto the cheaper cards sold for cameras.

    Gaming

  • The chain guards its proprietary spice blend closely, mixing it at one warehouse and shipping sealed bags to every kitchen.

    Cooking

  • The fund's trading model is proprietary, and even clients who invest millions never learn which signals it follows.

    Finance

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