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Deciphering The Indecipherable — The Dictionary of Branding
Welcome to the Scarcliff | Salvador Dictionary of Branding, the
most comprehensive glossary of branding and naming on the Web. Our
goal is to produce and maintain an up-to-date record of the terms
of art in use in our field, including the latest branding concepts,
naming styles and techniques, tagline types, and commercially-useful
linguistics terms.
Each entry is cross-referenced if appropriate and includes examples
from the marketplace wherever possible. Please contact us with your
suggested additions and corrections.
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Markedness (linguistics, verbal branding)
Any distinctive surface quality which distinguishes a name from
its ordinary counterpart in the lexicon. A name may be marked graphemically,
orthographically, phonemically, morphemically, semantically, syntactically,
or in some combination of any or all of these.
Matronym (naming, verbal branding)
Any brand name derived from the name of a real, fictional, or mythical
maternal figure. Mrs. Fields is an example of a matronym.
Megabrand (branding, marketing)
Any brand which dominates one or more categories. Compare Metabrand
and Range Brand.
Metabrand (branding, marketing)
Any brand which transcends several categories and prompts consumers
to see those categories in a new light. Oprah Winfrey is
an example of a metabrand. Compare Megabrand and Range Brand.
Meronym (naming, verbal branding)
Any word that names a part that belongs to a larger entity. In other
words, any word that suggests a part-whole relationship, such as
‘door’ or ‘window’ in ‘house’ or ‘engine’
or ‘steering-wheel’ in ‘car’. Compare Holonym.
Metanalysis (linguistics, naming)
The consumer's interpretation or analysis of an unfamiliar name,
the process of which may include folk etymology, analogy, etc. Compare
Folk Etymology and Analogy.
Metaname (naming, verbal branding)
The literal translation of a name from one language into another.
Compare Metaphrase.
Metaphor (naming, verbal branding)
Any figure of speech in which one object or concept is likened to
another.
Metaphrase (naming, verbal branding)
The literal translation of a phrase from one language into another.
Compare Metaname.
Metonym (naming, verbal branding)
The substitution of one name for another of similar meaning. Using
the term ‘the White House’ to refer to the Executive Branch
of the United Sates governement is an example of metonymy.
Micronym (naming, verbal branding)
Any unusually short brand name The Motorola Q mobile device
is an excellent example of a micronym.
Mimetic Word (naming, verbal branding)
Any word or name created in direct imitation of another word. For
example, the word ‘litterbug’ was coined on the analogy
of the word ‘jitterbug’.
Mondegreen (linguistics, verbal branding)
A misheard song lyric.
Mononym (naming, verbal branding)
Any brand name consisting of a single word.
Morpheme (linguistics, verbal branding)
Any meaningful linguistic unit which cannot be further subdivided
into smaller meaningful parts. In English, the letter ‘s’
in final position (at the end of a word) is a morpheme indicating
plurality.
Mucker Pose (linguistics, verbal branding)
The affectation by one social group of the distinctive linguistic
habits of another in order to curry favor with that group. In the
United States, a country music singer who adopts a fake southern
accent is striking a mucker pose.
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