Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To cause to become generic, especially as a product that is sold without a brand name or as a designation for an entire class of products or services.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb transitive To make generic (used especially of a trademark).

Etymologies

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Examples

  • The secularist who run the entertainment industry wants nothing to do with real Christmas music and will 'genericize' until is become non religious - not recognizable.

    Latest Articles 2009

  • Hence the limitation; the popular and least risky approach to big-budget titles is to genericize them so as to appeal to the broadest possible audience.

    Religion in MMOGs 2006

  • And ACLU litigation has created a "chilling effect" that has led to overreactions by public schools like banning the school choir from singing Handel's Messiah and private companies who genericize the holiday season in their advertising.

    BatesLine: December 2005 Archives 2005

  • And ACLU litigation has created a "chilling effect" that has led to overreactions by public schools like banning the school choir from singing Handel's Messiah and private companies who genericize the holiday season in their advertising.

    Coals (of fire) in the ACLU's stocking - BatesLine 2005

  • It turns out that it is possible for a company to lose its trademark if it doesn't seem to care whether people genericize their product.

    The Washington Post: National, World & D.C. Area News and Headlines - The Washington Post 2011

  • Staying on the leading edge of the Shockwave (it's what the art critics call my movement - to compartmentalize, trivialize, genericize me) used to be easy.

    365 tomorrows 2009

  • The serial strips get the general outline of modern cars, but blur or genericize their details.

    Blogtimore, Hon 2009

  • [...] up is Brian Cronin of Comics Should Be Good, whose review of Big Crossover #1″ attempts to genericize as many proper names as [...]

    Big Crossover #1 Review | Comics Should Be Good! @ Comic Book Resources 2008

  • Staying on the leading edge of the Shockwave (it’s what the art critics call my movement – to compartmentalize, trivialize, genericize me) used to be easy.

    365 tomorrows » 2009 » February : A New Free Flash Fiction SciFi Story Every Day 2009

Comments

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  • To make a brand name, trademark, etc., generic, such as Kleenex for any facial tissue, Xerox for any photocopy machine or to make a photocopy, or google, to search on a search engine.

    January 12, 2009