Fauxbesity

June 30, 2009

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Even dictionary.com is becoming outdated.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 […]

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Dating? Try “Going Dutch”

June 04, 2009

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 […]

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Creative Naming Fights for Freedom from Censors

April 13, 2009

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 […]

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Making a Mark with Brand Punctuation

February 04, 2009

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 […]

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Climate Confusion

November 24, 2008

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 […]

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Word Stretch #2: Freedom

October 22, 2008

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 […]

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The Caducity of Words

October 16, 2008

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 […]

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Baby Names

September 22, 2008

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 […]

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Word of the day: Hypermiler

August 27, 2008

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 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 […]

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It’s Irregardless Anyways

August 22, 2008

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 […]

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