Fauxbesity
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Even dictionary.com is becoming outdated. With our new fast paced, technologically inclined society, it seems like we don't even have time to blink before it's time to update again. In order to "keep up with the times" many companies are introducing their own novelities. For fear of sounding cliche, some companies have opted to simply create new words in order to differentiate themselves. Millions of products and services clutter our marketplace, so how do we stand out? Ingenuity. Marketers and Advertisers today want to tell you something different, something that you don't already know. So they are going to coin a new phrase or define a new word to do it. That is sure to grab consumer attention...right?
Fauxbesity, a new word splashed across the pages of magazine advertisements, utterly baffles dictionary.com and my trusty old Merriam-Webster pocket dictionary. Perusing through Martha Stewart Living Magazine, this fancy little word jumped off the page, begging me to read on. Well done Subway, you caught my eye!
Subway defines Fauxbesity as a noun meaning the "half-hearted claims other fast food chains make about helping kids eat better." It seems that so many companies have tried to say the same thing in an innumerable amount of different ways. Enough is enough, there are only so many different variations available to be fought over. So Subway decided to leave the clutter behind and reinvent the health food arena with this catchy little new word.
In my personal opinion, I think this innovative word creation is a great idea for market differentiation. Let's face it, we are always growing and expanding, looking for bigger and better ways to stand out. Why not spice things up a bit? If it works, and people connect with your new "creation," I say go for it! Carry on fauxbesity!
Contributed by Carrie Friedrich
Dating? Try "Going Dutch"
Inspired by a recent discussion on the NYTimes about Dating in a recession I was curious to find out the origins of the term "Going Dutch".
Definition: When every participant in a shared activity pays his or her own way.
Etymology: First of all it appears that Dutch etiquette has always promoted the act of paying separately when going out in groups. However, during the Anglo-Dutch wars in the 17th and 18th centuries (4 in total) the rivalry inspired the English to concoct many phrases referencing the Dutch in a negative manner, "going dutch" being one of them. Other phrases include:Read more
Creative Naming Fights for Freedom from Censors
In our daily quest to create names that are strategically on-target AND available for trademark, our verbal branding team employs the full range of symbolism, metaphors and illusions. With that, we are always on the look-out for new and creative word and letter usages.
One fairly new naming trend uses letter strings to make a name that phonetically sounds like a word...think Motorola RAZR and KRZR. While we explore this type of naming strategy to help our clients pass the trademark process, some artists are using a similar strategy to foil censorship policies.
A Chinese "children's" song on YouTube tells the simple story of the "Grass Mud Horse" (picture a lama) that lives in "Ma Le Desert" and battles the "river crab" to protect its grass. If you think thatRead more
Making a Mark with Brand Punctuation
Brand namers are constantly searching for new and innovative ways to utilize the 26 letters of the English alphabet. Perhaps the answer is beyond those letters. A punctuation mark in your brand name not only helps it stand out from the crowd, but, if it is truly distinctive, can even be registered and protected as part of your trademark.
Look at how these brands have used a little punctuation in a big way:
E*Trade
Consumer identification with the asterisk between E and Trade is so strong that the punctuation itself is part of E*Trades registered trademark. The asterisk has also been extended across E*Trade's marketing materials, serving as a calling card for the brand.
Yahoo!
If a name ever needed an exclamation point, Yahoo was it. Without added punctuation the word Yahoo was at risk for coming across as an insult or as sarcasm. The exclamation point forces audiences to read the name as it was intended, as a celebratory shout. The simple mark has become as much a part of the name as the letters themselves.
Häagen-Dazs
If you think that this name is simply using traditional diacritics to stay true to its foreign heritage, think again. The umlaut in Häagen-Dazs is as meaningless as the name itself. The brand simply uses two made up words with cleverly placed punctuation in order to appeal to upscale audiences seeking a super-premium ice cream import.
Contributed by Maghan Cook
Climate Confusion
Here’s the scene: It’s an unseasonably cold day. You have just completed a freezing run through the parking lot and have caught the elevator going up. The stranger next to you, visibly chilly, remarks, “so much for global warming, eh?”
I can’t tell you how many times this exact scenario has happened to me, which leads me to believe one of two things: 1. Strangers like to talk to me, or 2. The name Global Warming is fundamentally misleading. (Let’s just assume it’s the latter.)
Apparently the same events seem to happen to Al Gore, as urban dictionary has added “The Gore Effect” to its lexicon, meaning “the phenomenon that leads to unseasonably cold temperatures whenever Al Gore visits an area to discuss global warming.”
So what’s the deal?Read more
Word Stretch #2: Freedom
FREEDOM: The quality of state of being free: independence / Exemption or release / Ease, facility / Frankness / Unrestricted use / A political right
At first glance the word freedom may not appear very ‘stretchable,’ but a quick trademark search reveals 94 registered or pending marks. Certainly a word that can apply to everything from herbicides to hotels has got some flexibility.
While looking over the various trademarks, I realized that “freedom” can be divided into four categories:
1. Freedom as a philosophy- meaning free will
Leveraging the emotions behind personal identity, name brands in this category suggest living independently and authentically – being who you want to be. Brands that use this angle would include Freedom surfboards, inline skates, and the Freedom cologne by Tommy Hilfiger.
2. Freedom with regard to politics- meaning liberty or right
Freedom in this case garners strong political or government connotations. Brand names under this category are literally relaying a sense of protection and government, including Freedom aircrafts, armored vests as well as the ever so popular Freedom fries.
3. Freedom from restriction- meaning relief, emancipation
Many products in the medical field use the word freedom to connote relief from discomfort or restraints. Fresenius has a Freedom home dialysis machine. Freedom pesticide suggests freeing your crops or land from pests.
4. Freedom to do things- meaning latitude, flexibility
The most ‘freeing’ category of the four, these trademarks suggest providing range and ability. Freedom communications suggests going and connecting wherever you want, and Winnebago’s Freedom motor home invites consumers to explore the open road.
Freedom is a concept that everyone can relate to in one way or another, which makes it a potent word in the naming industry. Of course, with 94 trademarks in the US alone, whether it’s ‘free’ to own or not is up to your trademark attorney.
Contributed by: Maghan Cook
The Caducity of Words
A recent article in Time magazine highlighted group of words that are up for removal from the Collins English dictionary in order to make room for 2000 new entries. So hurry up and use these goodies while they still count!
Abstergent: Cleansing
Agrestic: Rural
Apodeictic: Unquestionably true by virtue of demonstration
Caducity: Perishableness
Caliginosity: Dimness
Compossible: Possible in coexistence with something else
Embrangle: To confuse
Exuviate: To shed
Fatidical: Prophetic
Fubsy: Squat
Griseous: Somewhat grey
Malison: A curse
Mansuetude: Gentleness
Muliebrity: The condition of being a woman
Niddering: Cowardly
Nitid: Bright
Olid: Foul-smelling
Oppugnant: Combative
Periapt: An amulet
Recrement: Refuse
Roborant: Tending to fortify
Skirr: A whirring sound, as of the wings of birds in flight
Vaticinate: Prophesy
Vilipend: To treat with contempt
Contributed by: Maghan Cook
Baby Names
Forget the book of 1,000 baby names. Try consulting a calendar, the produce section at the grocery store or a list of inspirational words instead. If the names of Hollywood babies are any indication, non-traditional baby naming is becoming the new norm. Even if the majority of people aren’t going quite so far as to name their child Mango or November, popular baby names today are quite different than they were 50 years ago.
Top 10 Girl Names (1957)
Mary
Susan
Linda
Debra
Karen
Deborah
Cynthia
Patricia
Barbara
Donna
Top 10 Girl Names (2007)
Emily
Isabella
Emma
Ava
Madison
Sophia
Olivia
Abigail
Hannah
Elizabeth
Top 10 Boy Names (1957)
Michael
James
David
Robert
John
William
Mark
Richard
Thomas
Steven
Top 10 Boy Names (2007)
Jacob
Michael
Ethan
Joshua
Daniel
Christopher
Anthony
William
Matthew
Andrew
By: Jessica McGrail
Word of the day: Hypermiler
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According to Wikipedia, hypermilers are drivers who exceed the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated fuel efficiency on their vehicles by modifying their driving habits.
The energy in fuel consumed in driving is lost in many ways, including engine inefficiency, aerodynamic drag, rolling friction, and kinetic energy lost to braking. Driver behavior can influence all of these factors to reduce fuel consumption. WIRED magazine discusses the subject at length.
Related terms:
Nempimania (also Nenpimania) is an obsession with getting the best fuel economy possible from a hybrid car. It is derived from the Japanese "nempi" meaning fuel economy, and "mania".
Ecodriving is a term used in Europe to name initiatives which support energy efficient use of vehicles. Check out this site for golden rules on ecodriving.
Contributed by: Maghan Cook
It's Irregardless Anyways
With so many words in the English language, it can sometimes be difficult to know if any particular word is a real word or not. According to AskOxford.com, the second edition of the Oxford English Dictionary contains 171,476 words in current use and 47,156 obsolete words. That’s a lot of words. But there are some words that people say or write on a regular basis that aren’t really words at all. Some examples include:
Irregardless: This just doesn’t even make sense because it is a double negative. “Regardless” means to have no regard- which is what most people think they are saying when they use the word “irregardless.” It was most likely formed from someone trying to combine “irrespective” or “irrelevant” with “regardless.”
Anyways: Although used in some English dialects, this is not standard. The word is “anyway.”
Passerbys: One person passing by is a passerby. Multiple people passing by are passersby.
Alterior: The word you are looking for here is “ulterior,” which is heard most often in the phrase “ulterior motive.” Ulterior means something outside or beyond what is openly said or shown. I think “alterior” must have been confused with the word “alternative” which means other option.
Ya’ll: Let’s think back to first grade grammar here. This word is a contraction of “you” and “all” so it should be “y’all.”
What other misspelled/misused words can you think of?
By: Jessica McGrail