Word.ws English Dictionary

patent trolling

Syllables: pat·ent troll·ingUK/ˈpætənt ˌtɹəʊlɪŋ/US/ˈpætənt ˌtɹoʊlɪŋ/

patent trolling noun: the practice of owning and enforcing patents in an aggressive and opportunistic manner, often with no intention of marketing or promoting the subjects of the patents.

Noun

patent trolling (uncountable)

  1. (derogatory, informal) The practice of owning and enforcing patents in an aggressive and opportunistic manner, often with no intention of marketing or promoting the subjects of the patents.

Origin of patent trolling

From patent troll, which is derived from patent + troll (“in folklore, a grotesque humanoid creature living in caves or hills, or under bridges”), a reference to trolls in folktales who block the path of travellers or threaten to harm them unless some payment is made.

Questions about patent trolling

What does patent trolling mean?
Patent trolling means the practice of owning and enforcing patents in an aggressive and opportunistic manner, often with no intention of marketing or promoting the subjects of the patents.
What part of speech is patent trolling?
Patent trolling is a noun.
How do you pronounce patent trolling?
Patent trolling is pronounced /ˈpætənt ˌtɹəʊlɪŋ/ (UK).

Words near patent trolling in the dictionary

  1. patent pool
  2. patent pools
  3. patent thicket
  4. patent thickets
  5. patent troll
  6. patent trolling
  7. patent trolls
  8. patentabilities
  9. patentability
  10. patentable
  11. patentably

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: patent trolling (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “patent trolling.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/patent_trolling. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.