50 Common Words That Are Used As Brand Names

BOOGIE BOARD

Boogie Board has become the generic term in many countries for a surfing bodyboard, but the name is a trademark that was acquired by Wham-O from inventor Tom Morey more than 30 years ago. In fact, Intersport Corp. served notice in 2016 on several bodyboard makers for infringing the trademark.

 

SUPER GLUE

The scientific name for Super Glue is cyanoacrylate, which hardly rolls off the tongue, so it’s no wonder the brand name has become the generic term for the fast-acting, ultra-strong adhesive. The Super Glue Corporation commercialized the product in 1958 and continues to own the trademark.

 

YO-YO

Donald F. Duncan’s eponymous toy firm popularized the yo-yo and owned the trademark from 1930 until 1965, when it was challenged in the US legal system. Much to Duncan’s chagrin, an appeals judge decided the name had become part of common parlance and revoked the trademark.

 

THERMOS

The German Thermos company trademarked its vacuum flask in 1923. Having originally encouraged the everyday use of the word Thermos to corner the market, the company went on to defend its trademark, but lost out in 1962 when a US court ruled the term had become generic.

 

PILATES

The exercise method developed by Joseph Pilates in the 1920s was a protected trademark owned by New York’s Pilates Studio until 2000, when it was challenged in a Manhattan court. The presiding judge concluded that the term had become generic and the trademark was canceled.

 

VELCRO

Nobody calls the hook and loop fastener by its proper generic name – the fastening system goes by Velcro, a portmanteau of the French words ‘velour’ (‘velvet’) and ‘crochet’ (‘hook’). Velcro was invented by Swiss engineer George de Mestral in 1941 and the company he founded still owns the trademark.

 

BREATHALYZER

The gadget used by police to check a person’s blood alcohol level is known the world over as a Breathalyzer, as there’s no other term in common usage, but the word was actually trademarked in 1954 by the device’s inventor, Indiana State cop Robert Frank Borkenstein (pictured in the center).

 

JACUZZI

What Americans and Canadians call a hot tub or whirlpool bath, many people in other parts of the world refer to as a Jacuzzi, which is a registered trade name. Ironically, Jacuzzi is a US firm but the use of its name as a generic term didn’t catch on as much in North America.

 

ZIMMER FRAME

Similarly, US firm Zimmer Biomet owns the patent and trademark for the Zimmer Frame, its particular type of walker, which has become the generic term for the mobility aid in the UK, but not in its country of origin.

 

HOOVER

Hoover is another example of a US brand name that has become a generic term overseas but not in its home country. While still a trade name, the word is commonly used for any type of vacuum cleaner in the UK and Commonwealth countries.