Can you name the Generonyms?

created by SporcleAdmin

Enter a generonym in the box below
Correctly named generonyms will show up below
Answers do not have to be guessed in order
Note: a Generonym is Brand-Name item used by the populace as the generic name for a product.
Special thanks to Sporcle user: SonOfSibir
Also try: Homonyms

You have 6 minutes to guess after you click the button below.

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Show Missed Answers

Description	Generonym
Facial tissue
Re-sealable plastic bag
Slow cooker
Flying toy disc
Online search
Gelatin dessert
Photocopy
Hygenic cotton swab
Image editing software
Adhesive medical bandage
Canned prepared meat
Toaster pastry
Non-stick pan coating

Description	Generonym
'Hook and loop' or 'touch' fastener
Correction fluid
Inline skates
Plastic food storage container
Whirlpool bath
Clear, plastic adhesive
Refillable cigarette Lighter
Petroleum jelly
Lip Balm
Instant photo
Sugar based fruit drink mix
Multi-function pocket knife
Pain relief medication
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Generonyms Quiz

Rating:	Report a mistake
Published: March 20th, 2009
Category: Language
Plays: 144,976

Tags: generonym, description, heteronym

Loading friend results....

	bluesixstring:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:10 GMT	9 points
	25/26. Went the wrong direction for Non-stick and kept typing every spelling of Crisco I could think of! Great quiz. The funny thing is that, personally, we can all add our own. Nobody ever orders a soda, you order a coke or a pepsi by default so there are private generonyms too.

	Booger:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:15 GMT	10 points
	I'm sure I won't be the only one wondering why "White Out" doesn't work!

	trent spangler:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:16 GMT	9 points
	Missed that one too. There is no "h" in wite-out. I think it should count if you spell it with the "h" tho.

	skk123:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:17 GMT	9 points
	White out needs to work because most people aren't aware that it's spelled without the H.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:18 GMT	13 points
	"White-out" should be accepted. I'm fairly sure 9/10 people who've actually used it would spell it like that. If you want to say they're all spelling it wrong, I could say that means they aren't using the brand name as a generonym so it doesn't belong on this list.

	Havok3595:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:18 GMT	0 points
	It's not about what you're aware of, it's about what it is, and it is a proper noun lacking an "h". This was fun!

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:20 GMT	16 points
	It's ENTIRELY about what you're aware of. If you aren't using the word "Wite-out," but the word "White-out" instead, then is it really a generonym?

	Havok3595:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:20 GMT	-3 points
	It's usually said verbally, so that would be like saying that numatic should be acceptable for pneumatic since that's what it sounds like.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:21 GMT	-1 points
	I guaruntee you wite-out isn't last on the most gotten list because people don't know it. It's last because people apparently aren't using the word "wite-out," so it apparently isn't a generonym.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:22 GMT	-3 points
	It's on the label of the bottle. How is that "verbally"?

	MLA:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:22 GMT	12 points
	I kept trying various glues for "clear, plastic adhesive"...

	HollywoodLeo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:22 GMT	5 points
	White out doesn't work for wite-out? Come on now.

	Havok3595:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:23 GMT	5 points
	My bottle says "Wite Out". I'm saying that when it's used as a genoronym it isn't written out.

	jereboam:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:23 GMT	14 points
	No-one "vacuums" the carpet in the UK - we've all got a Hoover, whoever it's made by.

	HollywoodLeo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:23 GMT	7 points
	Heh. I didn't know "rollerblades" was an actual company name so I didn't try it. I also misspelled Aspirin. Didn't realize there was an I before the r as well as after it.

	weizenugb:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:24 GMT	-4 points
	Good quiz. I'm not sure Google really fits in the same category as the other ones on this quiz, though. Whereas the others are all brand names that have become accepted as names for the product type in general (Kleenex for any brand of tissue, Band-Aid for any brand of adhesive bandage), I think Google still refers to just Google searching. I mean, maybe I'm splitting hairs, but whenever someone tells you to "google" something, they mean go to www.google.com and search. They would never say "go google it" and expect you to use Yahoo or Lycos or MSN or whatever. Is that just how I see it or does anyone agree?

	HollywoodLeo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:25 GMT	7 points
	As for the ensuing White-out debate. It accepts "zip" for "Ziploc" so I think, to maintain continuity, it's only fair to accept "white out"

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:27 GMT	-4 points
	I'm saying that what people are saying is "white-out" because that's what most people believe is the spelling. A generonym is a brand name commonly used to refer to a product of that brand or a different one. If people aren't using the word "wite-out" but the word "white-out" instead, then it isn't a generonym.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:29 GMT	0 points
	Tim: that's the point. Someone says to "Google it" under the assumption that you will use Google. The same as someone saying to "get a Band-Aid" under the assumption that it's the brand you will use.

	HollywoodLeo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:30 GMT	4 points
	Then your argument is that it shouldn't even be on the quiz, because I guarantee most people are thinking "white-out" and not "wite-out" when they're referring to "correction fluid".

	springmom:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:31 GMT	17 points
	I don't ask for a band-aid under the assumption that's the brand that will be used. I am a school teacher, and we use a generic brand, but EVERYONE, teachers, students, whoever, asks for a BAND-AID. It's like using hoover for vacuum in the UK.

	HollywoodLeo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:32 GMT	15 points
	@Tim, Google fits perfectly for the quiz. When someone wants to tell you to do an online search they don't generally say "Do an online search!" they say "google it!" much the same as they don't ask you if you need a tissue after you sneeze, but instead ask you if you need a Kleenex.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:32 GMT	2 points
	Last point on the white out thing because I'm sure at this point I'm just annoying: Havok is the only person arguing against accepting "white-out", while there are currently comments from five different people saying they expected the h to be included. Although I see Havok's point, that's why I'm arguing that the h should be accepted.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:33 GMT	2 points
	Leo: That, or accept the other spelling. It's an "I know what you meant" thing.

Comment below threshold: show it

	jism:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:34 GMT	-3 points
	Ah good old Sellotape. Or as UK fans of Blue Peter will know it, sticky-back plastic. And lipsyl is used quite often to describe lip balm over here (as well as chapstick).

	Nuclear_Knuckles:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:35 GMT	4 points
	Tony, how is ordering a Coke a generonym? If you want a Coke, you order a Coke. If you want a Sprite, you don't ask for a Coke. ... I agree that it should take "White-Out" (and I think it has been changed, since I'm pretty sure that's how I spelled it). Usually I am a stickler for correct spelling on these quizzes, but in this case, I agree that it's not necessary. BECAUSE the term has become generic, when people say it they are no longer referring to the specific brand which uses its own quirky spelling. ... Tim Welch, I think Google works. I disagree that someone telling you to Google something specifically means you should go to google.com. They just mean to look it up online.

	Bray:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:37 GMT	-2 points
	Also, I can't believe so many people missed Teflon.

	Nuclear_Knuckles:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:39 GMT	11 points
	I should add that I have heard in some places in the south, "Coke" refers to "soda." But that is definitely not the case in most places, so I don't think it would make sense here. ... Others that could be included: "Walkman" for portable tape player; "Ipod" may already work for any portable mp3 player.

	estefania:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:39 GMT	18 points
	i did not know how to spell frisbee... and i was trying "pam" for the non-stick pan coating... LOL

	Archaeopteryx:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:40 GMT	13 points
	@Nuclear Knuckles--in the southern United States, people use "coke" as a generonym. Quite often, you'll be asked "What kind of coke do you want?" and if you answer "Dr. Pepper," nobody thinks that's strange at all.

Comment below threshold: show it

	sub:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:42 GMT	10 points
	If you go to a restaurant, you ask for "coke" or "diet coke" .. regardless of which particular brand it is. The only people I ever hear asking for Pepsi specifically are the ones who really care about it.

	Alicia:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:42 GMT	9 points
	@Nuclear Knuckles I think the "coke" thing is more common in the south. Here (New Orleans) people usually order a "Coke" which is then followed by "What kind?" and so on. I think it's more of a regional thing, not a country wide saying.

	Drofter:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:42 GMT	4 points
	25/26 - misspelled aspirin, but gave up because it is not a trademark like the rest, but the name of the product that several companies (bayer, etc.) put their trademark on. Tried things like Tylenol til out of time

	davidr:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:43 GMT	8 points
	@Nuclear: If I order a Coke, I get either a Coke or a Pepsi or possibly some other random brand of cola. "Coke" is a generonym for cola pretty much everywhere and, according to some of the comments here, there are places where it's a generonym for all kinds of soda.

	ElDavo:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:45 GMT	3 points
	Nuclear: You're right to say that it could become one, but there aren't enough other mp3 players for people to call iPods and have it generate into a generonym.

	davidr:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:45 GMT	7 points
	"Escalator" is also a generonym. Originally, it was a trademark of Otis.

	Nuclear_Knuckles:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:46 GMT	1 point
	Oh yeah, forgot about the aspirin. That is a generic product, isn't it? And since it has different qualities from Tylenol or Advil (i.e, eating your stomach, thinning your blood), it doesn't seem like it is used interchangeably with those. Maybe it used to be.

	davidr:	Mar 20th, 2009 at 19:46 GMT	3 points
	@Drofter: "aspirin" is still a Bayer trademark in some places.