Brands and inventions

When brands become words: 10 U.S. classics

Some 20th-century inventions solved real problems of everyday life, and their stories are just as surprising: like Band-Aid helping soldiers during World War II, or the Jacuzzi being created to relieve arthritis pain. Over time, many of these products became so popular that their brand names turned into everyday words. Here are 10 brand names that became everyday words.

Every small cut brings it to mind, but did you know that Band-Aid was created in 1920 by Earle Dickson, a Johnson & Johnson employee, for his wife? Josephine Dickson often got cut and burned while cooking, so Earle combined two products: adhesive tape and gauze, and the Band-Aid Brand adhesive bandage was created. One year later, 1921, they were already in stores, and in 1942, Band-Aid was the product in every soldier's kit on the front lines of World War II. One century later, in 2021, Band-Aid introduced "OURTONE" bandages, designed to better blend with brown skin tones. Today, it remains the top-selling bandage brand.

Although today they’re linked to relaxation and luxury, the Jacuzzi wasn’t originally designed for that. The story begins with seven Italian brothers who moved to California in the early 1900s. Known as the Jacuzzi Brothers Inc., they worked as inventors, developing water pumps for agriculture and engineering solutions for aviation.

Their most important invention came from a personal need. After one of the brothers’ sons, Kenneth, was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, Candido Jacuzzi created a portable hydrotherapy pump to help ease his pain. Introduced in 1956, the device turned a regular bathtub into a therapeutic spa. In 1968, Roy Jacuzzi took the idea further and launched the first fully integrated whirlpool bath. Today, the company holds more than 250 patents, and "Jacuzzi" has become almost synonymous with whirlpool baths.

Another man who made a discovery that stood the test of time. In 1968, Spencer Silver was trying to create a super-strong adhesive at 3M (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company), but instead came up with a weak, reusable one. It could stick to surfaces without leaving marks, but at first, no one knew what to use it for.

A few years later, in 1974, Art Fry needed a bookmark that would stay in place without damaging pages. He realized Silver’s adhesive was perfect for that idea, and it quickly evolved into small and removable notes. In 1977, they were called "Press n’ Peel," but the product didn’t gain much attention until 1980, when they were relaunched as Post-it Notes and became part of everyday life.

Believe it or not, it all started with pie. The Frisbie Pie Company of Connecticut was one of the most successful bakeries on the East Coast by the mid-1900s. College students began tossing empty pie tins, shouting "Frisbie!" to warn each other, and the name stuck as the game spread across campuses.

On the other side of the country, Walter Frederick Morrison was experimenting with flying discs. Inspired by the growing fascination with UFO sightings, he designed a plastic version called the "Pluto Platter," which he was selling in Los Angeles by 1951. In 1955, Wham-O, a renowned toy brand, spotted him and brought him on board. After hearing the word "Frisbee" used by college students, the company officially adopted the name in 1957. Today, flying disc sports are played around the globe by millions of people.

During World War I, Kimberly-Clark developed crepe paper for gas mask filters. After the war, with less demand for military supplies, the company needed new uses for the material. In the 1920s, it was adapted into Kotex, offering a more hygienic option for women. It was later marketed as a "marvelous new way to remove cold cream," but, in 1927, the company suggested another use: disposable "absorbent handkerchiefs." By 1930, it was promoted as "the handkerchief you can throw away," reflecting a growing focus on hygiene and convenience. Today, it’s hard to think of tissues without calling them Kleenex.

In 1923, after seeing his wife wrap small pieces of cotton around toothpicks, Leo Gerstenzang founded the Leo Gerstenzang Infant Novelty Co. and began producing a ready-to-use cotton swab.

The product was first called "Baby Gays," then renamed "Q-Tips Baby Gays" in 1926, before being shortened to simply Q-tips. The "Q" stands for quality. It became widely popular in the 1920s–30s as a baby care product, and in 1987 was acquired by Unilever, helping expand it worldwide. Over time, the name "Q-tips" became so common that many people use it to refer to any cotton swab, not just the brand.

How did a young banjo player in Minnesota end up creating Scotch Tape? Richard Drew, who practiced the banjo in his free time, joined 3M Company (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company) in 1923 and began working with materials in auto body shops. There, he noticed painters struggled to get clean lines because existing tape damaged fresh paint. He solved this by inventing masking tape in 1925. An early version didn’t have enough adhesive, and painters joked the company was being "scotch," or cheap; a nickname that stuck.

In 1930, Drew adapted the idea to cellophane, creating the first transparent Scotch Tape for sealing and everyday use. The product became especially popular during the Great Depression, when people used it to fix and reuse items instead of replacing them because they were rather expensive or scarce in markets.

In 1845, Peter Cooper created a powdered gelatin, but it wasn’t yet a ready-to-use dessert. Decades later, in 1897, Pearle Bixby Wait and his wife, May, added sugar and fruit flavor, turning it into what would become Jell-O. In 1899, the couple sold their flavored gelatin product and business to their neighbor, Orator Francis Woodward, for $450 because it wasn't growing.

Until Woodward then built a strong marketing campaign, using free recipe booklets and traveling salesmen to show how easy it was to make, helping Jell-O grow in popularity. By the early 1900s, it was already a household name, and today, it’s known as one of America’s most famous desserts.

Dr. Feet was a pharmacist in Lynchburg, Virginia, who opened his family-run pharmacy in 1869. He was known for creating remedies and experimenting with ingredients to help customers.

In the 1890s, he developed an early version of ChapStick. However, it wasn’t until his friends, Mr. and Mrs. Morton, who had already bought the product, refined the idea that the product took shape. Mrs. Morton melted the mixture and poured it into brass tubes to form sticks, making it easier to use and ready for wider distribution, turning the product into America’s easy-to-carry favorite for lip care to this day.

In 1959, the Xerox 914 copier was introduced, allowing people to make plain-paper copies quickly, changing office work for good. How did it all start? Patent attorney Chester Carlson created the first xerographic image in 1938. He needed a simpler way to copy documents after studying imaging processes at the public library. At first, he called his method "electrophotography," because it used light and static electricity. After being rejected by more than twenty companies, his idea was finally picked up by the Haloid Company, when a consultant suggested the name "xerography," meaning "dry writing," to replace the original term.

After the success of the Xerox 914, Haloid Company renamed itself Xerox in 1961, turning the invention into a global business. The copier quickly became essential in offices, making document duplication faster and more accessible than ever before. As the technology spread, the brand name became so widely used that "to xerox" started to mean "to photocopy," until these days.

Deep roots

11 everyday words with indigenous roots

English is a very welcoming language in the sense that it incorporates terms from many other languages from all over the world. And, as it couldn’t be otherwise, Native American languages have lent many of their words and terms to English speakers. Some traveled through Spanish or French before settling into English, and others arrived directly through early contact and trade, helping shape the way we speak today. Did you know about these 11 terms?

The word "canoe" comes from the Taino term canoa, which was first used by Caribbean islanders long before Europeans arrived. Early explorers adopted it to describe the slim, sturdy boats they saw.

Over time, "canoe" became the standard English word for a small paddled craft. Today it still carries that sense of simplicity and closeness to nature.

The word "barbecue" comes from barbacoa, another Taino term for a wooden frame used for cooking meat over fire. Europeans adopted it and applied it to both the method and the gathering itself.

Today, "barbecue" means everything from a backyard cookout to a regional cooking style. Its origins highlight the deep culinary influence of Native Americans in the nation's current culture.

"Skunk" comes from the Algonquian word squnk, which means "urinating fox" (quite a fitting term, indeed). This was an obvious reference to the animal’s strong defensive spray. Early settlers adopted the term directly.

Since English had no better name for the creature, the Native word stuck. Today, the word skunks is also used as playful slang.

The word "moose" originates from Eastern Abenaki, a part of the Algonquian family, where it meant "he strips off bark." Yes, it described the animal’s habit of tearing bark from trees.

The name entered English quickly because settlers relied on Native knowledge of local fauna. The word remains unchanged because of its accuracy and usefulness.

"Raccoon" comes from the Powhatan word arakun, meaning "he scratches with his hands." It described the animal’s clever, humanlike front paws.

Settlers adopted the term because it captured the creature’s behavior beautifully. Today, the raccoon is used as a household symbol of curiosity, not unlike the animal itself.

The term "chipmunk" most probably comes from the Ojibwe word ajidamoo, which means "one who descends trees headfirst." Early English settlers adapted the sound into today’s form.

Though the spelling changed over time, the lively image of a chipmunk racing down a tree face-first stayed.

The word "caribou" comes from the Mi’kmaq term qalipu, which means "snow shoveler," referring to the animal’s habit of digging through snow for food.

French settlers brought the word into English, keeping its descriptive nature. The name still connects the modern animal to the winter landscapes it belongs to.

"Totem" comes from the Ojibwe word ototeman, which means "kinship group." It described symbols representing clans and shared roots.

English adopted it to describe carved poles and symbolic elements. Though broader in modern usage, it still hints at the original sense of community, identity, and heritage.

"Coyote" comes from the Nahuatl word coyōtl, which was used by Indigenous tribes of central Mexico. Spanish speakers adopted it, and English borrowed later.

The word kept its meaning, and it remains one of the most direct links between the English language and Nahuatl.

The tasty avocado’s name traces to the Nahuatl word ahacatl, which refers to the fruit and to a body part as well. Spanish speakers transformed it into aguacate.

Later on, English speakers adapted it to avocado. While the name sounds contemporary and culinary, it has ancient Native roots.

The last Nahuatl word and also the last word on the list comes from the term xocolātl, which describes a bitter cacao drink that was consumed long before Europeans arrived in America. The name traveled from Spanish to English.

Though the product changed dramatically, the word survived. Today, chocolate is a universal symbol of sweetness, with rich and deeply indigenous roots.