{"id":4780,"date":"2016-02-15T21:17:06","date_gmt":"2016-02-15T21:17:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/?p=4780"},"modified":"2026-07-15T16:13:54","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T16:13:54","slug":"12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/","title":{"rendered":"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you ever eaten granola in the morning? Tossed a frisbee? Ridden up an escalator? If so, you might be surprised to know that you\u2019ve inadvertently been using brand names of products with registered trademarks. Indeed, granola, frisbee, <\/i>and escalator <\/i>are proprietary eponyms, <\/b>which means that they all began as brand names before they entered our lexicon as generic nouns. Here\u2019s ten seemingly common words that actually refer to brand names.<\/p>\n

1. Jello<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>gelatin dessert<\/p>\n

In 1897, Kraft Foods invented Jell-O, <\/i>a brand of gelatin-based snacks that come in a variety of flavors. But unlike the dessert, which is jiggly and malleable, the word \u201cjello\u201d has become a firmly ingrained part of our everyday lexicon. Indeed, it\u2019s unlikely that college students will start referring to jello shots as \u201cgelatin dessert shots\u201d any time soon.<\/p>\n

2. Escalator<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>moving staircase<\/p>\n

Another 1897 invention, the escalator <\/i>is actually a portmanteau of the words \u201cscala\u201d (Latin for \u201cstep\u201d) and \u201celevator\u201d, coined by the Otis Elevator Company. Though escalators are commonplace now, they caused quite a splash when they were introduced: an early account in a European department store describes customers as so \u201cunnerved\u201d by the experience that they had to be \u201crevived with smelling salts and cognac\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"propep_image1\"<\/a>

Image via Stig Nygaard<\/a> \/ Wikipedia<\/p><\/div>\n

3. Bubble wrap<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>sealed air packaging<\/p>\n

Bubble wrap keeps fragile items safe in the mail, and is fun to pop. We owe both the concept and the word to the Sealed Air Corporation, which invented bubble wrap in 1957.<\/p>\n

4. Frisbee<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>flying disc<\/p>\n

\u201cWanna go toss the flying disc?\u201d This request may sound odd, though it\u2019s technically correct, as \u201cfrisbee\u201d actually refers to a brand that represents only a fraction of flying discs worldwide. Indeed, Frisbee has been a trademark of the Wham-O toy company since 1957.<\/p>\n

5. Highlighter \/ Hi-Liter<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>felt-tip writing device<\/p>\n

In 1963, Massachusetts-based Carter\u2019s Ink Company invented the Hi-Liter, a felt tip writing device that adds emphasis to text. Now, the term \u201chighlighter\u201d has become so common that it\u2019s used both as a noun (e.g., \u201cpass me the highlighter\u201d) and a verb (e.g., \u201chighlight a passage in a book\u201d).<\/p>\n

6. Kitty litter<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>cat litter<\/p>\n

Marketing guru Ed Lowe first invented cat litter in 1947, calling his product \u201cKitty Litter\u201d. The catchy name stuck, and the market grew rapidly. Though the trademark has become genericized, you\u2019ll still see companies use terms like \u201ccat litter\u201d or \u201cclumping litter\u201d to avoid infringement.<\/p>\n

How much do you know about the English language? Find out by taking a <\/i><\/b>free online English level test<\/i><\/b><\/a>!<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

7. Granola<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>whole grain cereal<\/p>\n

A favorite breakfast cereal, granola consists of whole grains that are toasted and lightly sweetened. It began as a trademark of Kellogg\u2019s in the late 19th century, but just as granola\u2019s ingredients have expanded \u2014 now often including nuts and dried fruits \u2014 its use in our lexicon has, too.<\/p>\n

\"propep_image2\"<\/a>

Image via Vegan Baking<\/a> \/ flickr<\/p><\/div>\n

8. Mace<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>aerosol self-defense spray<\/p>\n

In 1965, Allan Lee Litman registered the trademark Chemical Mace for his product, which offered self-defense in a spray can. Popularly marketed to women in shady areas, mace is now used as an umbrella term to encompass a variety of similar products.<\/p>\n

9. Styrofoam<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam<\/p>\n

The Dow Chemical Company technically owns the rights to the popular packaging filler known as \u201cstyrofoam\u201d. Just as styrofoam itself has saved countless delicate items, the word \u201cstyrofoam\u201d has saved us English speakers from having to refer to the stuff as \u201cclosed-cell extruded polystyrene foam\u201d.<\/p>\n

10. Velcro<\/b><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/i>hook-and-loop fastener<\/p>\n

Velcro has an interesting history: it was invented by a Swiss engineer who was inspired by burrs that stuck to his clothes. Since then, it was acquired by the Velcro company, and is registered as a trademark to them.<\/p>\n

11. Scotch tape<\/strong><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/em>transparent adhesive tape<\/p>\n

Manufactured by 3M, Scotch tape was invented in 1930. In its 80+ years of existence, however, it’s found its way into mainstream vocabulary, and now is used to describe the transparent tape that’s ubiquitous at home and in the office.<\/p>\n

\"Scotch<\/a>

Image via Improbcat<\/a> \/ Wikipedia<\/p><\/div>\n

12. Band-Aid<\/strong><\/p>\n

Generic name: <\/em>adhesive bandage<\/p>\n

It’s fairly well-known that “Band-Aid” is a brand name; however, that doesn’t stop us from using it instead of its clunky alternative, “adhesive bandage.” Indeed, surely you’ve heard somebody ask for a Band-Aid, but “Do you have an adhesive bandage for my paper cut?” is a decidedly odd request.<\/p>\n

This list only scratches the surface of brand names that have entered our collective vocabulary. Honorable mentions include dumpster <\/i>and ping pong, <\/i>which also began their legacy as products. If nothing else, these proprietary eponyms show the flexibility of the English language, and how easily words can evolve from their origins.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Have you ever eaten granola in the morning? Tossed a frisbee? Ridden up an escalator? If so,…","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":4781,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,864],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4780","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-learning-resources"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Speaking of etymology, did you ever realize how many words have no origin at all, other than brand names themselves? Check out just a few and their industrial history.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Speaking of etymology, did you ever realize how many words have no origin at all, other than brand names themselves? Check out just a few and their industrial history.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Language Trainers UK Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-02-15T21:17:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-07-15T16:13:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"417\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Paul\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Paul\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/\",\"name\":\"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-15T21:17:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-15T16:13:54+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ee9de4fb81c622d514ddf526fc8a467d\"},\"description\":\"Speaking of etymology, did you ever realize how many words have no origin at all, other than brand names themselves? Check out just a few and their industrial history.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg\",\"width\":640,\"height\":417},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Language Trainers UK Blog\",\"description\":\"Any language, any time, anywhere\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ee9de4fb81c622d514ddf526fc8a467d\",\"name\":\"Paul\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86f723954879251b89b91c55f995d0e5?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86f723954879251b89b91c55f995d0e5?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Paul\"},\"description\":\"Paul is a New York-based expat living in Buenos Aires. He enjoys playing piano, watching tango, and eating dulce de leche by the spoonful.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/author\/paulmains\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names","description":"Speaking of etymology, did you ever realize how many words have no origin at all, other than brand names themselves? Check out just a few and their industrial history.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names","og_description":"Speaking of etymology, did you ever realize how many words have no origin at all, other than brand names themselves? Check out just a few and their industrial history.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/","og_site_name":"Language Trainers UK Blog","article_published_time":"2016-02-15T21:17:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-07-15T16:13:54+00:00","og_image":[{"width":640,"height":417,"url":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Paul","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Paul","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/","url":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/","name":"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg","datePublished":"2016-02-15T21:17:06+00:00","dateModified":"2026-07-15T16:13:54+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ee9de4fb81c622d514ddf526fc8a467d"},"description":"Speaking of etymology, did you ever realize how many words have no origin at all, other than brand names themselves? Check out just a few and their industrial history.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/propep_image1.jpg","width":640,"height":417},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/12-common-words-that-you-didnt-know-were-brand-names\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"12 Common Words That You Didn\u2019t Know Were Brand Names"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/","name":"Language Trainers UK Blog","description":"Any language, any time, anywhere","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ee9de4fb81c622d514ddf526fc8a467d","name":"Paul","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86f723954879251b89b91c55f995d0e5?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/86f723954879251b89b91c55f995d0e5?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Paul"},"description":"Paul is a New York-based expat living in Buenos Aires. He enjoys playing piano, watching tango, and eating dulce de leche by the spoonful.","url":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/author\/paulmains\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4780"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4780"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4780\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5562,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4780\/revisions\/5562"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4780"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4780"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.languagetrainers.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4780"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}