Origin: Latin suffix -ary
Proprietary has 4 different meanings across 2 categories:
an unincorporated business owned by a single person who is responsible for its liabilities and entitled to its profits
"The small artisan bakery operates as a proprietary where the owner bears full financial risk but keeps all earnings."
A proprietor or owner.
"The proprietary decided to expand the shop into a new location next door."
protected by trademark or patent or copyright; made or produced or distributed by one having exclusive rights
"`Tylenol' is a proprietary drug of which `acetaminophen' is the generic form"
Of or relating to property or ownership.
"The proprietary rights granted to the new owner included full control over the land and its resources."
In plain English: Proprietary means something that belongs to and is controlled by a specific company rather than being available for everyone to use freely.
"The company refused to share its proprietary software code with anyone outside the team."
Usage: Use proprietary when describing technology, software, or products that are owned by a specific company and protected from use by others without permission. This term is often confused with the noun form "property," but it functions as an adjective indicating exclusive rights rather than general possession.
The word comes from the French propriétaire, which was borrowed from the Latin proprietārius. It originally meant "of or relating to property," derived from the root for ownership.