What is a Twix, anyway?

Is the Snickers bar named after an animal? 12 candy names explained

Image: Denny Müller

If you have never seen a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup or an Almond Joy but only read the name, chances are that you would be able to form an idea of the product. But this is not always the case with candies and candy bars. Many of these delicious treats have names that do not seem to have any logical connection with their contents. But they do have it. Take a look at the following 12 famous examples. Did you know about any of these?

Image: Shyam Mishra

The Snickers bar, introduced by the Mars, Inc. company in 1930, was named after the Mars family's favorite horse. Snickers lived on their farm and was dearly loved.

Sadly, the horse passed away shortly before the candy bar's release, so naming the bar after him served as a tribute to their cherished companion.

Image: Justin

The name Kit Kat traces back to the 18th-century Kit-Cat Club in London, which itself was named after Christopher Catling, a pastry chef nicknamed "Kit Cat."

Rowntree's, the company that launched the bar in the 1930s, chose the name to give it a touch of history and sophistication.

Image: Irfan Zaini

M&M’s stands for Mars and Murrie, the last names of the candy’s creators. Forrest Mars of the Mars Company teamed up with Bruce Murrie, son of Hershey’s president, and the delicious, colorful candies were born.

Image: Alexander Schimmeck

Starburst got its name to reflect the candy’s bold, fruity flavors, like a burst of flavor in every bite.

Originally launched in the UK in 1960 as Opal Fruits, it was renamed Starburst for the U.S. release in 1967, likely to create a more dynamic, space-age image during the height of the space race.

Image: Steffen Rehfuß

Sour Patch Kids were originally called Mars Men when they debuted in the 1970s, playing off the era’s fascination with space.

When introduced in the U.S. in 1985, the name changed to Sour Patch Kids to tap into the Cabbage Patch Kids craze. The new name also highlights the candy’s signature sour-then-sweet taste.

Image: Cemrecan Yurtman

The 3 Musketeers bar got its name in 1932 from its original trio of flavors: chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla. Each bar came in three separate pieces, echoing the "three" theme.

The name also nodded to the popular novel The Three Musketeers. During World War II, rising costs of sugar and fruit led to the discontinuation of strawberry and vanilla, leaving only chocolate—the version we still enjoy today.

Image: Alan Pope

The Milky Way bar was named after a popular malted milk drink from the 1920s, not the galaxy.

The name was meant to suggest a creamy, rich flavor, echoing the appeal of the drink that inspired it.

Image: Jonathan J. Castellon

Skittles were named after the old European game of skittles, similar to bowling. The candy's round shape was the connection with the original game.

First produced in the UK in 1974 by a British distributor for Mars, Inc., the name was likely chosen to convey fun and flavor variety.

Image: Erik Mclean

The PayDay bar got its name because it was first made on—yes, you guessed it—a payday at the Hollywood Candy Company. The timing inspired the name, which stuck.

Introduced in 1932 during the Great Depression, it was marketed as an affordable, energy-packed snack. With its combination of peanuts and caramel, it offered real substance, which can be a metaphor for a little "payday" in candy form.

Image: Louis Hansel

Anyone would be forgiven for thinking that the Baby Ruth bar was named after baseball legend Babe Ruth—but that’s not the case. The candy does indeed sound like it could honor the sports icon, but the Curtiss Candy Company claimed otherwise.

They stated that it was named after Ruth Cleveland, the daughter of President Grover Cleveland.

Image: NATasha Nguyen

The 100 Grand bar was originally called the $100,000 Bar, inspired by quiz shows with big prizes, such as The $64,000 Question.

In the mid-1980s, Nestlé renamed it 100 Grand, likely to ease trademark issues and generate a greater appeal by simplifying the name.

Image: Petr Magera

The name Twix is a blend of the words "twin" and "sticks," referring to its two chocolate-covered biscuit bars. It was first released in the UK in 1967 under the name Raider.

When introduced in the U.S. in 1979, the bar was renamed Twix. The twin-bar design later inspired the playful "Left vs. Right Twix" advertising campaign.

Dictionary heavyweights: The absolute longest words in English

In casual conversation, you’d probably never use most English words that go past 15 or 20 letters. They are usually scientific or medical terms built by stacking smaller words together. Yet, exploring these linguistic giants is a fun way to learn how our language handles specialized vocabulary. Let’s take a look at some of the longest words in the English-speaking world, starting with one so ridiculously big it stretches the definition of what a word can be. Can you guess what it is?

To kick off the list, we have to look at a number that looks like a typo, but is entirely accurate: 189,819 letters. This is the full chemical name for the human muscle protein known commonly as titin.

Because proteins are complex chains of amino acids, their formal chemical names must list every single component in order. This particular sequence starts with methionylthreonylthreonylglutaminylarginyl… and keeps going for thousands of syllables. If you wanted to print it out, it would easily fill more than 50 pages. Want to try reading it out loud? You might want to clear your schedule, because it would take more than three hours.

The longest place name in English belongs to a 1,001-foot-high hill located in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. It boasts a staggering 85 letters: Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu.

Derived from the Māori language, this long title translates to a poetic statement: "the place where Tamatea, the man who had big knees, the climber of mountains, the slider, the land-swallower that traveled about, played the nose flute that he had to the loved ones". Unsurprisingly, locals and tourists alike usually save their breath and refer to it simply as "Taumata".

Not to be outdone, the United States has its own geographical giant sitting in Massachusetts. With a total of 49 letters, Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg is the longest official place name in America.

While the name originates from the language of the Nipmuc people, this huge version is believed to be a humorous invention by a local newspaper editor in the early 20th century. Along with the long spelling, the editor popularized a fake translation: "You fish on your side; I fish on my side; nobody fishes in the middle." Today, it’s also known as Webster Lake by anyone trying to type it into a GPS.

The longest word entered in most standard English dictionaries is Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, which is 45 characters long. Found in specialized volumes like Merriam-Webster’s Medical Dictionary, it refers to a severe lung disease caused by the chronic inhalation of fine silicate or quartz dust, typically associated with volcanic activity. Ironically, medical professionals don’t actually use this word in daily practice; they simply call the condition silicosis.

Pseudopseudohypoparathyroidism, at 30 letters, is a rare medical condition that mimics the physical skeletal traits of another disorder called pseudohypoparathyroidism. Aside from its impressive physical length, it holds a unique distinction in lexicography: it’s the only word in the dictionary that features a repeating consecutive "pseudo".

There’s a unique category of words that almost never appear in real sentences. Because they lack everyday utility, dictionaries acknowledge their existence but choose not to give them formal entries.

This group includes antidisestablishmentarianism (28 letters), which refers to a 19th-century political movement in Britain. Also, the classic floccinaucinihilipilification (29 letters), a mashup of Latin roots that means the act or habit of judging something to be completely worthless. Finally, the most beloved of this group is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (34 letters), the iconic nonsense phrase made famous by Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins.

In the medical world, knowing a term like methylenedioxymethamphetamine (29 letters) is essential. While that mouthful might look unfamiliar at first glance, it refers to a synthetic amphetamine known for its hallucinogenic properties. Because nobody wants to write or say all 29 letters in a casual conversation, people have opted to use its much shorter street name, ecstasy, or its concise chemical acronym, MDMA.

In the context of a research lab, some specialized technical terms fall into the twenty-to-thirty-letter sweet spot. Some of them are: Electroencephalographically (doing something by means of an electroencephalograph, a medical machine used to read and record brain wave patterns); radioimmunoelectrophoresis (a laboratory technique that uses radioactive labels to analyze specific proteins); laryngotracheobronchitis (a medical condition involving severe inflammation in the larynx, trachea, and bronchial tubes); and hydrochlorofluorocarbon (a type of greenhouse gas).

These are long but feel more recognizable. At 22 letters, we can find terms like counterrevolutionaries (individuals who fight to overthrow a newly established revolutionary government), deinstitutionalization (the social and political process of moving patients out of asylum institutions), and otorhinolaryngological (anything relating to the medical specialty of the ear, nose, and throat).

If you’re looking for everyday 21-letter words, terms like incomprehensibilities (things that are impossible to understand) will do the trick. Also, this tier features medical terms like pseudohermaphroditism (a condition involving ambiguous external genitalia) and psychoneuroimmunology (the branch of medicine that studies how a person’s emotional state impacts their immune system).