Trademark terms, in plain language.
39 terms you will meet in a USPTO filing, refusal or renewal notice — written so you can tell what they mean for your application.
39 terms
Abandonment
Your application died, usually because a deadline passed.
Refusals and deadlinesAcquired distinctiveness
A descriptive name that became a brand through long use.
Refusals and deadlinesAllegation of use
Proof you have started actually selling under the mark.
FilingApplicant
The person or business that will own the registration.
FilingBasis for filing
Why you are entitled to file: you use it, or you intend to.
FilingCease and desist letter
A formal demand that someone stop using your mark.
After registrationClass
The category your goods or services fall into. Fees are per class.
FilingCommon law rights
Rights you get from using a name, without registering it.
Choosing a nameConfusingly similar
Close enough to an existing mark that buyers might mix them up.
Refusals and deadlinesDead mark
A record that is abandoned, cancelled or expired.
Choosing a nameDescriptive mark
A name that describes what you sell. Hard to register.
Choosing a nameDisclaimer
Giving up exclusive rights to a generic word inside your mark.
Refusals and deadlinesDistinctiveness
How strongly a name works as a brand rather than a description.
Choosing a nameExamining attorney
The USPTO lawyer who reviews your application.
FilingGeneric term
The common name for the thing itself. Never registrable.
Choosing a nameGoods and services description
The exact wording of what you sell. It defines your rights.
FilingIntent to use
Filing before you have started selling, to reserve your place.
FilingLikelihood of confusion
The most common reason applications are refused.
Refusals and deadlinesMadrid Protocol
A treaty for extending your mark to other countries.
After registrationNotice of Allowance
Your intent-to-use mark cleared, but is not registered yet.
FilingOffice Action
An official letter refusing or questioning your application.
Refusals and deadlinesOfficial Gazette
The USPTO's weekly publication where marks appear for opposition.
FilingOpposition
A formal challenge to your mark before it registers.
FilingPrincipal Register
The main register, with the strongest rights.
FilingPriority date
Your place in the queue against later filers.
FilingRegistration symbol
The R in a circle. Only for registered marks.
After registrationSection 15 declaration
Optional filing that makes your registration much harder to attack.
After registrationSection 2(d) refusal
Refused because of an existing similar mark.
Refusals and deadlinesSection 8 declaration
Proof you are still using the mark, or it gets cancelled.
After registrationSpecimen
Real-world evidence of the mark being used in commerce.
FilingSupplemental Register
A secondary register for marks not yet distinctive enough.
Refusals and deadlinesSuspension letter
Your application is paused pending something else.
Refusals and deadlinesTEAS
The USPTO's online filing system for trademarks.
FilingTrade dress
The look and feel of a product or place, not the name.
Choosing a nameTrademark
Anything that identifies the source of your goods or services.
Choosing a nameTrademark squatting
Someone registering your brand before you do.
After registrationTSDR
Where you check the live status of any US application.
After registrationTTAB
The tribunal that hears oppositions and cancellations.
FilingUse in commerce
Real sales or services across state or national lines.
Filing