Reprinted with permission from Digitalsynopsis.com
This list of legally protected trademarks may be used generically by consumers, but cannot be used by their companies’ competitors. All these brands have been registered as trademarks and are actively enforced by the trademark owners. Their generic names, non-trademarked, appear in brackets afterwards.
Band-Aid™ [adhesive bandage]
Bubble wrap™ [inflated cushioning]
Chapstick™ [lip balm]
Dumpster™ [front loader waste container]
Fiberglass™ [glass wool]
Frisbee™ [flying disc]
Google™ [Internet search engine]
Hula hoop™ [toy hoop]
Jacuzzi™ [hot tub or whirlpool bath]
Jeep™ [compact sport utility vehicle]
Jet Ski™ [stand-up personal watercraft]
La-Z-Boy™ [reclining chair/sofa]
Lava lamp™ [liquid motion lamp]
Memory Stick™ [flash memory storage device]
NOS™ [nitrous]
Photoshop™ [photo manipulation]
Ping Pong™ [table tennis]
Plasticine™ [modeling clay]
Polaroid™ [instant camera]
Popsicle™ [ice pop/ice lolly (UK)]
Post-It™ [sticky note]
PowerPoint™
Realtor® [real estate agent]
Rollerblade™ [inline skates]
Scotch Tape™ [clear adhesive tape]
Super Glue™ [ Cyanoacrylate adhesive]
Super Heroes™ [Superhero]
Taser™ [electroshock weapon, stun gun]
Teflon™ [polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)]
Vaseline™ [petroleum jelly, petrolatum]
Velcro™ [hook-and-loop fastener]
Walkman™ [personal stereo]
Xerox™ [photocopy]
Ziploc™ [zipper storage bag]
Former trademarks that are now generic terms due to common use:
Aspirin [acetylsalicylic acid]
Cat’s eye [retroreflective road safety installation (road studs)]
Cellophane [thin, transparent sheet of regenerated cellulose]
Dry ice [solid form of carbon dioxide]
Escalator [moving staircase]
Heroin [diacetylmorphine]
Kerosene [combustible hydrocarbon liquid]
Laundromat [coin laundry shop]
Sellotape [ transparent, cellulose-based, pressure-sensitive adhesive tape (UK)]
Thermos [vacuum flask]
Trampoline
Videotape
Former trademarks that are now generic terms due to reasons other than common use
App
App Store
Yo-yo
Zipper
Pearl S. Buck Writing Center 