brand names becoming the product names.

[sistar]

Not sure this is the right section, but here goes, I was thinking the other day about brand names that have come to mean the object, whatever its brand, for example, Hoover for Vacuum cleaner, I can also think of Sellotape, Tippex, Jeep, iPod seems to be moving in that direction, I'm sure there are more, anyone got any ideas?

[FoxLee]

Only one I can think of at the moment is Biro

[Xollob]

The list is fairly endless:
escalator, heroin, lyrca, vaseline, velcro, walkman etc. are all registered trademarks.
Bizarrely, Google are trying to crack down on the use of the verb "to gogle".

[Xollob]

and to *google*, too

[ThisSpace]

How about Tannoy.

[Quizmonster]

Click here for a website with loads of such eponyms. They're not all brand/trade names, but many are.

[Rock'n'Roll]

The one that springs to mind for me is "Thermos" A brand name used though, to describe any vacuum flask

[Alibobs]

I think some names take over gradually, I always say marigolds for rubber gloves and Fairy liquid when referring to washing up liquid.

[heathfield]

And Sellotape

[B00]

And Tampax.

[tictactoe]

Jacuzzi

[tictactoe]

Elastaplast

[emmalee]

Playstation, Wet ones, .......................

[saxy_jag]

Cling film
Bacofoil
Kleenex
Portakabin
Dayglo
Formica

[tictactoe]

Just saw 'Elastoplast' in B&S and realised I had spelt it incorrectly...DOH !!!

[B00]

Bacofoil? Do most folks use that instead of the correct form of tin foil which I always say?

(Well, when I say I always say tin foil, I do obviously use it in the correct context, I don't randomly throw it into conversations- ahem!)

[spudqueen]

Tannoy annoyed me immensly after the Herald of Free Enterprise disaster. There was a report in the paper saying something like 'it was announced over the tannoy.......' and Tannoy wrote a letter saying that the ship didn't have a tannoy - it had a public address system which was not made by Tannoy. As if we cared - loads of people had just died and whether the ship had a tannoy or other public address system didn't really matter.

[Hammond Egg]

If you want to stir up a hornet's nest, try writing 'Portakabin' without a capital 'P'

[lankeela]

Vetbed a type of furry canvas backed dog bedding that allows any wet to seep though originally sed by vets in hospital cages.

[jno]

companies get very vexed when they think their name is being used for products that are not their own, because it weakens the brand; if it becomes widespread enough they can lose the legal right to their own brand name... which is why Google are trying to stop this happening.

[sistar]

on a school trip a number of years ago to the local 3M factory, one of the party made the mistake of asking a question about 'Sellotape', it was met with a very icy, "We dont make sellotape, I think you mean Scotchtape", real 'handbags at 50 paces' stuff!