Universal Names 1

[sbudzynski]

From another thread -

Reynold's Wrap never earned universal name that Xerox, Kleenex, or Q-Tips did, at least not where I grew up.

So other then Xerox, Kleenex, and Q-tips. Can you think of any other universal names?

Chapstick
Coke (in some parts)

----------

Steve Budzynski


"So, pass another round around for the kids. Who have nothing left to lose and for those souls old and sold out by the soles of my shoes"

 

[Stella740pl]

OK, I live in USA for over 10 years, and I've never heard term "Saran wrap" used, let alone as a generic term. Must be local. I am not sure if there is a "Cling wrap" term, but it's what I usually hear/use: cling wrap or cling film. Sometimes a brand name (not Saran) is used, but I can't even recall which one.

As for Legos, don't hear too often, too. Usually it's "Lego blocks", where, I believe, Lego is assumed to be a brand name.

And didn't hear Kleenex to used as generic term too often. Had this conversation with a coworker:
Her: I need to go to <name of a distant store> buy tissues.
Me: Why would you go that far, the store downstairs has some tissues on sale.
Her: No, I need Kleenex, and <the distant store> sell them cheaper, so I will stock up.

 

[Lunatic]

As competition increases there is a decrease the frequency of a term being used as commonization, case in point - Xerox. Apparently before my time (70's and 80's) you 'Xeroxed' things but my generation only 'copies' or 'photocopies' things.

Kleenex is going the same way, though it is still fairly common for me to hear people say 'Can you hand me a kleenex'.

Saran Wrap is another that I remember much more from the late 80's than today. With the increase in competion, rubbermade products, tubberware, and others, clingwrap is falling by the wayside.

****

One that is still going strong is 'Ziplock', at least where I grew up.

****

Legos - Until recently there hasn't been much competition for Legos has there? I don't remember any from my childhood days but today there a few (like MegaBlocks). I'm not sure what else Legos could ever have been refered too.

***

BJCooper is correct sha, your 'wheelies' are basically trashcans. Dumpsters are much larger. More traditional examples of dumpsters are:

http://www.platte.k12.sd.us/ttl/images/dumpster.jpg

http://claymore.engineer.gvsu.edu/~mathewst/dumpster.jpg

In the past they were predominately brown (or at least where I grew up) but that seems to be changing.

 

[Lunatic]

I must say, I've thoughly enjoyed learning about British names for things:

Wheelie Bins
Plaster (for bandages)
Cling film

And I'm sure the feeling is mutual

 

[columb]

An American 'dumpster' is a UK 'skip'.

Ceci n'est pas une signature
Columb Healy

 

[AnotherHiggins]

FYI: The commonization for little plastic containers is tupperware, not tubberware.

[tt]_____
[blue]-John[/blue][/tt]
[tab][red]The plural of anecdote is not data[/red]

Help us help you. Please read FAQ181-2886 before posting.

 

[Gooser]

I was begining to wonder why their p's were upside-down.

--Gooser

 

[Gooser]

columb - Any idea as to why it's called a 'skip'?

Stella740pl & Lunatic - TYCO had a building block line when I was a kid (in the 80's.) My parents bought them one Christmas because they were cheaper :-( They were cheaper for a reason. Oh, and down with mega blocks.

Not so much a trade name, but the old-timers back home call margarine, 'oleo'

Tarmac, isn't that one?

Snack Pack?

--Gooser

 

[Turkbear]

Hi,
Wikipedia time:

Tarmac (short for tarmacadam, a portmanteau for tar-penetration macadam) is a type of highway surface. Strictly speaking, Tarmac refers to a material patented by E. Purnell Hooley in 1901. The term is also used, with varying degrees of correctness, for a variety of other materials, including tar-grouted macadam, Tarvia, bituminous surface treatments and even modern asphalt concrete.

To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[SkipVought]

The 'Oleo' came in a plastic bag. It was WHITE (yuk!) There was a coloring agent that was deposited in the middle of the bag, and you could massage the bag until the oleo was a uniform yellowish color, now fit for consumption.

Skip,
[sub]
[red][/red]
[/sub]

 

[columb]

Gooser asked why are skips so called in the UK. The short answer is I don't know, but when I was much younger skip refered to any large container with an open top. It could well be that skip and dumpster are not true equivalents, dumpsters are, by definition, for rubbish, and skips are, by definition, open topped. It's just that we tend to put large scale rubbish in open topped containers.

Can anyone shed any light on this?

Ceci n'est pas une signature
Columb Healy

 

[Stella740pl]

Gooser,

I know, there are building blocks besides the Lego blocks, it's not the point. The point is, I haven't heard anyone call those other blocks Lego, so the brand didn't actually become generic.

As a matter of fact, my son has Mega blocks, but they are what they are - Mega blocks, not Lego blocks. Do you know if those different brands at least are interconnecting? I would guess not (even though I did buy some additional blocks from a discounted brand that connect well to the Mega blocks - I think they were supposed to imitate them).

 

[KenCunningham]

Interesting about tarmac, I always thought that 'blind' John Macadam had a part in it's invention. Incidentally, 'plaster' in England can also refer to a plaster of paris support for a broken limb, something a band-aid or 'elastoplast' might not be too much good at. Such a 'plaster' is sometimes colloquially known as a 'pot' or (in Scotland) a 'stookie'.

Must investigate the derivation of skip.

All I ask of you
Is make my wildest dreams come true

 

[KenCunningham]

Oops, I seem to have confused John Macadam with Blind Jack Metcalfe of Knaresborough. It's been a long time since secondary school!!

All I ask of you
Is make my wildest dreams come true

 

[Gooser]

Stella- I have heard the term 'Legos' used to describe any small building blocks, apparently though, it isn't as widespread as I thought. If you search ebay for Legos or Lego, though, you are sure to find oodles of things that are not Lego brand building blocks.

--Gooser

 

[Gooser]

...a plaster of paris support for a broken limb...

This is generally called a 'cast' in America.

--Gooser

 

[RCorrigan]

OK .....

Lego not Legos (here anyway) there is also MegaBlocks and Duplo (bigger blocks, smaller children !!!)

Dumpster v Skip NO !!!!!! Dumpster is more like commercial size waste containers, skips are what you get to clear out rubbish etc (Imagine renovating a house and the associated detritis)

Saran Wrap = clingfilm, but I thought that it was a generic American term.

Band-Aid = a plaster .... as pointed out, plaster can mean other stuff, but also thought Band-Aid was a generic Americanism


(sees hole but keeps digging !!!!!!!)


Kleenex tissues in the UK but equally a generic as a specific.


BTW - Joke alert

Council Refuse Collector appears and asks Gentleman of Oriental parentage (no bias intended) "Where's yer bin"

"I've bin on holiday" comes the reply.

"No" is the reply "Where's yer wheelie bin"


(I've got my coat and ordered a taxi)

"I've (w)really bin on holiday" !!!!!!!



<Do I need A Signature or will an X do?>

 

[Sympology]

YOu may find that a "cast" in US and "Plaster" in UK are actually the same thing, as in they both derive from "PlasterCast"



Only the truly stupid believe they know everything.
Stu.. 2004

 

[Lunatic]

Dumpster v Skip NO !!!!!! Dumpster is more like commercial size waste containers, skips are what you get to clear out rubbish etc (Imagine renovating a house and the associated detritis)

I'm going to have to disagree with you on this, if only because dumpster is far more inclusive than just the typical 6'x4'x4' (or so) 'commerical size waste containers'.

My dad is a contractor and on more than one occassion I've helped him on jobs where we ordered an industrial size dumpster (8'x20'x8' approximately), which sounds much like what you are claiming a skip is (for use during a renovation/remodeling project). For example, we once had a driver for a company tell us he'd never seen anyone fit so much into a dumpster (we fit about 85-90% of a an 1100 square foot deck into it) and was referring to the much large dumpster version we were renting for the project.

The smaller size dumpster is the most common, but the term is used for much larger variations as well.

 

[chrissie1]

Lego not Legos (here anyway) there is also MegaBlocks and Duplo (bigger blocks, smaller children !!!)

I would say that both are for the same size children especially around christmas time.

Christiaan Baes
Belgium

"My new site" - Me

 

[KenCunningham]

I can remember 'Bettabuilder' from when I was as boy (early sixties). I believe they were only available from Woolworths, but might be wrong. Much smaller than Lego, but more fun IMHO.

Meccano anyone? I could never get on with that!

All I ask of you
Is make my wildest dreams come true