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Glite Dictionary
letters patent

letters patent

9.5
An official paper from a monarch or government that gives someone the only right to make something
  • noun
  • /ˈlɛtərz ˈpeɪtənt/
  • Formal
translation icon : patente

Examples

  • The Court ruled that the "letters patent" handed to the Duke of York from his brother Charles II did indeed carry with it all rights of the sovereign.

    Academic text (2001)

  • Whereas my letters patent under the Great Seal bearing date of Westminster the 11th day of June 1912, His Majesty King George the Fifth did constitute order and declare that there should be a Guardian...

    The King's Speech (2010)

  • The exact parameters vary (they are set out in the letters patent for each activation), but the Council is never allowed to dissolve Parliament or create peers, unless instructed in each specific instance by the absent Queen herself.

    Blog text (31)

  • The monarch issued a set of letters patent to grant exclusive fishing rights to the coastal town.

  • The university received official letters patent to confer degrees and operate as an educational institution.

  • After reviewing the application, the government granted letters patent to the inventor for his innovative machine.

Synonyms

patent
vsletters patent
  • Specialized
282 4.4

An official document giving the only right to make or sell an invention for some years

is a formal sealed document granting broader rights, titles, or privileges
patent of invention
vsletters patent
  • Formal
6.8

A document that gives an inventor the only right to make, use, or sell an invention for a set time

is issued by a monarch or government and grants various rights or titles

Surface Forms

letters patent singular
letters patents plural

Morphology

letters + patent

The components 'letters' (documents) and 'patent' (a grant of exclusive rights) give a clear clue that this is an official document conferring a right, so a learner who knows both words could often infer the general sense. However, the phrase is a formal/legal term with historical usage, an unusual plural pattern and specific legal nuances (issued by a sovereign, sealed, publicly promulgated) that go beyond basic compositional meaning, making full understanding unlikely without prior exposure.

Etymology

Letters patent comes from old official papers that were meant to be public: they were letters shown 'open' to everyone, because patent came from a word meaning 'open'. That's why today letters patent means an official written document from a king or government that gives someone a 'right' or 'title'.