14 Super-Common English Words That Someone Technically Owns
Bayer would probably like us all to forget that they invented heroin and marketed it as a non-addictive cough medicine.
‘Lava Lamp’
It feels like “hot globs of dancing magma” has been programmed into the human psyche for eons, but it took lighting magnate Edward Craven Walker to bring it to fruition in 1963, at which point his company Mathmos patented the name.
‘Videotape’
Electronics company Ampex trademarked the term, forcing its competitor RCA to use dorky expressions like “TV tape” and “television tape.” They also filed a patent for a process that would allow recovery of data after their tapes wore out — it involves baking the tape at 129 degrees for 16 hours.
‘Flip Phone’
That thing you’d spend 20 cents per text on to arrange a ride home from the mall? It’s technically called a “clamshell phone.” Motorola trademarked “flip phone” in 1995.
‘Taco Tuesday’
Taco Tuesday exploded from the collective consciousness in 1979, being used by New Jersey’s Gregory's Restaurant & Bar and Indiana’s Taco John’s at the same time. The former held the patent in New Jersey specifically, and the latter held it in the rest of the country. At one point, LeBron James tried (and failed) to copyright the phrase for entertainment purposes, and Taco Bell begged the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to cancel the trademark.
‘ZIP Code’
“ZIP” is actually an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, and the term was trademarked by the USPS upon its introduction in 1963 (although it expired in 1997).
‘Heroin’
Not only was heroin supposed to be Bayer’s attempt at an over-the-counter, “non-addictive morphine substitute,” both highly-addictive hardcore drugs were intended to be used as cough medicine.
‘Laundromat’ and ‘Launderette’
Westinghouse trademarked “laundromat” in the 1940s and 1950s to refer to their automatic and coin-operated laundry machines, and competitor Telecoin-Bendix quickly locked down “launderette” in the U.K.
‘Jetway’ and ‘Tarmac’
Technically, you don’t take the “jetway” (owned by JBT AeroTech) to the “tarmac” (owned by Tarmac). You take the passenger boarding bridge to the asphalt road surface.
‘Dry Ice’
The solid form of CO2 was first noticed by scientist Adrien-Jean-Pierre Thilorier in 1835, but it took until 1924 for some jagoff to patent the product, and trademark the name on behalf of DryIce Corporation of America.
‘Realtor’
In everyday use, the word “realtor” applies to anyone you went to high school with who thinks they’re charismatic enough to be a CEO but doesn’t want to spend years in business school and just starts selling local property. But it actually belongs to the National Association of Realtors, who spend a good amount of time and resources reminding the world that they own it so the Patent and Trademark Office doesn’t declare it genericized.
‘Teleprompter’
It’s actually spelled TelePrompTer, and it’s been owned by the TelePrompTer Corporation since the 1950s. I bet they’re thrilled that every modern politician who uses their brand-name product is accused of being senile.
‘Super Hero’
The first known use of “super hero” was in 1917, meaning “public figure of great accomplishments.” It was later used by a Halloween costume company, then a toy company, then DC and Marvel were awarded joint custody over the trademark in the comic book space. The USPTO finally canceled the trademark in September of 2024, saying it had become generic.
‘Dumpster’
The Dempster Brothers trademarked the name in 1937, intentionally combining their last name with the word “dump” and leading to the success of their product, the Dempster Dumpster. The trademark was finally cancelled in 2015.
‘Adrenaline’
Adrenaline isn’t a naturally occurring Super Soldier Serum your brain keeps in an In Case of Emergency box — it’s actually a brand name for epinephrine that was trademarked in 1901, and is currently owned by Irish pharmaceutical company Endo International.