# Literal infringement

Infringement where the accused product or process contains every single element of a claim exactly as written. If even one claimed element is missing there is no literal infringement, though the doctrine of equivalents may still apply.

**Full entry:** https://patentbrief.org/glossary/literal-infringement

**All patent terms:** https://patentbrief.org/glossary

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_Source: PatentBrief — https://patentbrief.org. A plain-English glossary of US patent terms._