THE WORD DOCTOR
1/15/07 - Bad Brand Names

Dear Word Doctor,

Jell-O is a brand name, but it's also a food. So is it capitalized, lowercase, or does it depend on the situation?

-Ray

You're right that Jell-O is a brand name (and should therefore always be capitalized), but the word Jell-O is not a generic food. Instead, the brand name Jell-O has become synonymous with gelatin dessert mix; therefore, many people say, "May I have some Jell-O?" rather than "May I have some gelatin dessert mix?" (whether the dessert in question came from a Jell-O box or otherwise).

Other brand names that have come to represent generic products on a whole are:

-Kleenex (facial tissues)
-Xeroxes (photocopies)
-Band-aids (adhesive bandage)
-Hoover (vacuum)
-Frisbee (flying disc)
-Nintendo (video game console)

Brand names are generally harmless because any reader will automatically understand your reference; however, they are indeed proper nouns and should receive the capitalization any proper noun deserves.

Till next time.

:: return to Columns ::