A trademark is "any word, name, symbol, or device, or any combination thereof" used to distinguish the goods of one producer from a competitor. See 15 U.S.C. § 1127. A trademark may also be a sound, smell, packaging, or product design. 1 J. McCarthy Trademarks and Unfair Competition § 6:6 (5th ed. 2025). 

A trademark is not a mark which: 

1. "Consists of or comprises the flag or coat of arms or other insignia of the United States, or of any State or municipality, or of any foreign nation, or any simulation thereof." 15 U.S.C. § 1052(b).

2. "Consists of or comprises a name, portrait, or signature identifying a particular living individual except by his written consent, or the name, signature, or portrait of a deceased President of the United States during the life of his widow, if any, except by the written consent of the widow." Id. § 1052(c) 

3. Is likely to "cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive[.]" as to the source of the goods. Id. § 1052(d). 

4. Is descriptive or deceptively descriptive of the goods. Id. § 1052(e). 

5. Is geographically descriptive or geographically misdescriptive of the goods. Id. 

6. Is functional. Id. 

NOTE: The Lanham Act also states that a trademark cannot be a mark which "[c]onsists of or comprises immoral, deceptive, or scandalous matter; or matter which may disparage . . . persons, living or dead, institutions, beliefs, or national symbols[.]" 15 U.S.C. § 1052(a). However, these limitations have been declined unconstitutional in Iancu v. Brunetti, 588 U.S. 388 (2019), and Matal v. Tam, 582 U.S. 218 (2017).

Examples: 

1. For an example of a symbol as a trademark, consider the famous Nike "Swoosh." Registration No. 1,284,385.
2. For an example of a trademark as a series of words, consider the Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma's registration for "Red River Showdown." RED RIVER SHOWDOWN, Registration No. 3,016,449 (the trademark for "Red River Rivalry" is pending registration at the time of writing this guide).