Humanities › English What Is a Trademark? Share Flipboard Email Print japatino / Getty Images English English Grammar An Introduction to Punctuation Writing By Richard Nordquist Richard Nordquist English and Rhetoric Professor Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester B.A., English, State University of New York Dr. Richard Nordquist is professor emeritus of rhetoric and English at Georgia Southern University and the author of several university-level grammar and composition textbooks. Learn about our Editorial Process Updated on January 22, 2020 A trademark is a distinctive word, phrase, symbol, or design that identifies a product or service and is legally owned by its manufacturer or inventor. The abbreviation is written as TM. In formal writing, as a general rule, trademarks should be avoided unless specific products or services are being discussed. Exceptions are sometimes made when a trademark (for example, Taser) is better known than its generic equivalent (electroshock weapon). The website of the International Trademark Association [INTA] includes a guide to the proper use of more than 3,000 trademarks registered in the U.S. According to the INTA, a trademark "should always be used as an adjective qualifying a generic noun that defines the product or service [for example, Ray-Ban sunglasses, not Ray-Bans]...As adjectives, marks should not be used as plurals or in the possessive form, unless the mark itself is plural or possessive (such as 1-800-FLOWERS, MCDONALD’S or LEVI’S)." Popular Examples of Trademarked Brand Names Band-AidChapStickCrock-PotDolbyFormicaFreonFrisbeeHacky SackHooverJacuzziJeepJet SkiKleenexLoaferLycraMaceNaugahydePlaybillPopsicleRollerbladeSkivviesSporkTaserTeletypeVaselineVelcroWindbreaker Some Trademarks Become Mainstream While the following items were originally trademarks, these common names are now regarded as generic names: aspirinbundt cakecellophanedittodry iceescalatorgranolaheroinkerosenelinoleumLPminibikenylonpogo sticktarmacthermostouch-tonetrampolinewedgieyo-yozipper Cite this Article Format mla apa chicago Your Citation Nordquist, Richard. "What Is a Trademark?" ThoughtCo, Aug. 29, 2020, thoughtco.com/trademark-composition-1692555. Nordquist, Richard. (2020, August 29). What Is a Trademark? Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/trademark-composition-1692555 Nordquist, Richard. "What Is a Trademark?" ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/trademark-composition-1692555 (accessed May 28, 2023). copy citation Featured Video