Legal Definitions - arbitrary trademark

An arbitrary trademark is a type of trademark that contains common words that do not describe or suggest any characteristic of the product to which the trademark is assigned. This type of trademark is inherently distinctive and requires no proof of secondary meaning, making it entitled to strong legal protection.

For example, the trademark "Apple" for computers and electronic devices is arbitrary because it does not describe or suggest any characteristic of the products. Another example is the trademark "Amazon" for online retail, which is also arbitrary because it does not describe or suggest any characteristic of the service.

Arbitrary trademarks are different from descriptive trademarks, which are meaningful words in common usage or that merely describe or suggest a product. Descriptive trademarks are only entitled to protection if they have acquired distinctiveness over time.