How important is it for you to write "LEGO" vs Lego?

[Ardelon]

After learning on this site about the trademark protection issues, I generally go the extra mile and write LEGO in all caps. If TLG considers it important, its the least I can do. Though Im not civic-minded enough to write LEGO®.

[ElCrab]

I always write it as LEGO. But I also have to write the band CAKE as such, and my favourite movie "JAWS" is always capitalized as well.

[DPrime]

I always write it as LEGO. But I also have to write the band CAKE as such, and my favourite movie "JAWS" is always capitalized as well.

lol, is that how they are "supposed" to be spelled too?

[62Bricks]

Some of my various devices that have autocorrect will automatically spell it LEGO as I type now, probably because that's how I usually write it.

And I avoid using "legos" not just because LEGO wants me to - I do it as my own kind of protest against the generic use of the word to encompass other similar toys. Much of my time surfing eBay (capital B courtesy of autocorrect) is spent opening what look like great deals on "10 lbs of Legos" which turn out to be piles of Halo figures and large ugly molded pieces.

[Paul Boratko]

There are counter examples, of course.

Can I have two Coca-Colas, please?

or

Can I have two Coca-Cola, please?

Or say you drive past an exotic car dealership, should you say "Look at all of those Ferraris" or "Look at all of those Ferrari cars"..? Sometimes things just sound weird... Especially to us Americans...

I do my best to not say "Legos" but sometimes it happens... I think the only time that I 100% never say Legos is when I am talking about mini-figure parts... I never even refer to them as Lego... Just mini-figure parts...

Edited August 9, 2014 by Paul Boratko

[fred67]

I follow TLG's guidelines, generally, and typically only point it out to others when they should know better. I don't understand the big deal about following the company's terminology for their products.

One thing that bothers me is when some of these whiney people complain about TLG in some blog or article, and can't be bothered to use the correct way, especially professionals.

[tedbeard]

A case can be made that 'legos' is grammatically correct, because it is a relatively new word and this is the way most users use it.

No it cannot. There is no case.

And by "most users" you mean "most Americans and very few others". The pluralised usage is almost entirely an American phenomenon.

[alois]

No it cannot. There is no case.

And by "most users" you mean "most Americans and very few others". The pluralised usage is almost entirely an American phenomenon.

Since most native speakers of English live in the United States (I believe that's what you mean by America) my point still stands. But more important, what is correct or not correct in a language is not defined by a company. General usage is a more important factor.

[BrickG]

I don't see how it's any of anyone's business to feel the need to concern themselves with Lego's trademark issues. Honestly the way they literally bully people to make them believe they control the English language is disturbing.

It's whatever you want. Lego is fine. No English teach can knock you for that. Legos is too. Again, no English teacher can knock you. :P

It's amazing how much people believe Lego's propaganda. They do not control any aspect of the language and are wrong about basically everything when it comes to their name. They just try to get people to believe them because their trademark is in danger and IMO in ways that are inappropriate and educate with lies. Then they ask for respect to help them keep their trademark but tell me I'm wrong (literally straight from the mouth of a Lego rep).

There is literally nothing incorrect from a language perspective even outside of the US by saying "Legos", not capitalizing and all that other stuff.

No it cannot. There is no case.

And by "most users" you mean "most Americans and very few others". The pluralised usage is almost entirely an American phenomenon.

This is where you're completely, 100%, incorrect. Like so many others.

Lego has literally been spreading lies to protect their trademark. It's frustrating as heck because so many people now are completely wrong about how language works.

There is no rule that says you can't pluralize brand names. None. There is no grammatical rule that says anything like that.

Think of Grandmas. My Grandma calls all my video games "Nintendos" and they were all Nintendo when I was a kid, just kind of awkward usage of the name. Guess what. That's not a grammatically incorrect way to use the word "Nintendo". No English teacher can give you a bad mark for that. Pluralizing brand names can be done any time you want. There is zero English rules against it in the US or UK or any other English country. The worst you end up with is a potentially awkward sounding word like "Kleenexes" and stuff. But again, strictly from a LANGUAGE perspective it's not wrong.

The simple fact of the matter is that "Legos" is not incorrect English. It might SOUND wrong in places like the UK but even there isn't NOT wrong. Awkward maybe but still not wrong in a way that can get you a red mark in an English class.

The problem with "Legos" is that it's a threat to LEGO. If it gets too widely used they could lose the brand. So rightly so they're a bit fearful of that.

This is where my beef begins. In my opinion Lego has approached it the wrong way. Instead of simply asking us to refer to their stuff as "LEGO Bricks" and asking not to pluralize their brand name... they're literally telling us we're WRONG.

It's simply not factually true. A company has zero power over language and there is no rule existing in the English language that says we cannot pluralize brand names. In fact with other brand names we CAN and we DO. And again, strictly from a language perspective there's nothing wrong about that. It again, can be awkward sounding like "Nintendos" but again, still not WRONG.

I've spoken to a Lego rep in person and we had this discussion for a bit. And honestly I felt insulted and I feel like Lego is just spreading misinformation. The dude just told me I was wrong. No critical thinking or looking at the evidence. "Wrong wrong wrong".

I love Lego but every time I think about how they disrespect the English language by spreading misinformation I just get incredibly annoyed. And every time one of their reps tells me I'm wrong (well, it's their job maybe some don't actually believe it) I get insulted.

I know many of you won't believe me but look it up in the English rule books ;p. This "rule" that you can't pluralize brand names isn't real. Even if it's awkward to your mouth to say and ears to hear it's still not technically incorrect English.

I'd respect LEGO's wishes and call it the way they wanted if they didn't spread misinformation and treated ME with respect on the matter (instead I've gotten in trouble with them for simply suggesting this stuff). But they don't. So here I am living in the UK now and still saying "Legos". If I have kids I will pass "Legos" onto them. I'm just truly sick of this misinformed argument.

Edited August 10, 2014 by BrickG

[Modelmaker]

but LEGO is not an English word

[grum64]

According to LEGO Group it should be like this:

Oh dear. I'm a very naughty boy. I've only ever written Lego. I'll do better in future.

I promise

[BrickG]

but LEGO is not an English word

Irrelevant.

LEGO is a proper noun.

Proper nouns can be pluralized all you from a language perspective. Think Machintosh Computers - Macs, BMWs, and other brands like that.

This is just a rule of English. English has rules for things that are "made up".

Blablabla there is more to it that I won't get into but basically:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proper_noun#Brand_names_versus_proper_names

Now The LEGO Group might have a leg to stand on if you're referring to stuff like "The LEGO Group" or "LEGO System" and stuff with more than one word. But that is also irrelevant as companies can have official uses of terms for their marketting and communication but their policies don't magically make something grammatically incorrect.

The fact is "Legos" is a grammatically correct term, even if it sounds awkward to people. And yes, even in places like the UK where much fewer people use it.

The misinformation is just staggering. LEGO has successfully ran a campaign to distort the English language. Compaies cannot grammatically determine language.

[Thetford]

This just reminds me of the "Cul-de-sacs" vs "Culs-de-sac" debate from Gilmore Girls (or for a more modern debate, "forums" vs "fora"). To be honest, I prefer using Lego to LEGO, as it seems less pedantic and dramatic, and looks normal in a piece of text, not to mention, when people write in full capitals, it seems to me they are either "shouting" the word, or it is an acronym that stands for something.

[GregoryBrick]

Or say you drive past an exotic car dealership, should you say "Look at all of those Ferraris" or "Look at all of those Ferrari cars"..? Sometimes things just sound weird... Especially to us Americans...

The all-caps question aside, I understand the company's standards by thinking of LEGO as comparable not to Ferrari but to Sony. It would be odd to say either "I own a lot of Sony" or "look at all those Sonys". One would probably say "I own a lot of Sony electronics" or "Look at all those Sony products". LEGO wants their name to be used the same way - either to refer to the company as a whole or with an accompanying noun.

And this of course is a convention (with legal issues attached), not a grammatical one, for the reasons already stated.

[klinton]

I'm missing something here. How can The Lego Group lose thier trademark due to common usage of the term 'Legos'?

Kleenex is still a trademarked brand despite the fact that everyone who's ever sneezed has requested a 'Kleenex', regardless of the brand of tissue on hand. Why would this play differently for The Lego Group? Or are there loopholes when it comes to playthings that don't apply to hygenic items?

Edited August 10, 2014 by klinton

[Sir Walter Maugham]

I do make the sacrilegious error of referring to a pile of Lego bricks as "Legos" in casual conversations quite often. It's just habit. I've been doing it since I was 3, and I never took the time to mentally retrain myself.

And as you can see from my post I never use "LEGO" instead of "Lego." Sorry TLG, but typing your brand name in all caps makes it sound like I have an oddly specific verbal tic.

To make up for it, I do hound people for calling knockoff brands Lego.

Also, is that "Using the LEGO brand name" rigmarole aimed at individuals or other companies/media? I know TLG is trying to avoid all plastic bricks being called "Legos" but that came off as so incredibly anal-retentive.

Edited August 11, 2014 by Sir Walter Maugham

[LEGO Guy Bri]

I capitalize LEGO, but it doesn't bother me that others do or don't. Before I learned they wanted to be addressed in all caps, I used on a capital 'L' in the same way I use caps for all proper nouns that call for it. An example where that doesn't apply is ebay. It used to be eBay, but has since changed to ebay for the logo

[Miss Kyle]

I work for a LEGO licensee, so I have pretty much internalised the caps by now.

[8BrickMario]

I'll respect the company and refer to it the way they do. Once I became part of the LEGO (and I always use all caps these days) community, I've grown accustomed to using the brand name as such. Now "Legos" sounds a little childish to me, although it is reflexive to say it, and I would never criticize someone for saying it. But I agree with their rules. There is no such thing as "a LEGO". LEGO refers to the company and toys, but as an adjective for the products, not the product itself. A minifigure is not "a lego", it is a LEGO minifigure or just minifigure/minifig. Bricks are bricks, not LEGOs.

Is anyone picky about people referring to "LEGO sets" (staying proper here) being referred to as "kits"? It sort of bothers me, since I view a kit as something where you make something out of cardboard or whatnot, even though "sets" doesn't make too much sense as the term for the boxed and bagged pieces.

[BirdOPrey5]

I don't think I've ever written "Lego" in all-caps and doubt I will ever start to do so. With all respect to TLG they should be happy people mention them at all. The only word I've consistently written in all caps was L O S T to refer to the TV show with the plane crash, mysterious island, and disappointing ending.

[Lind Whisperer]

I try to remember to capitalize it and use it in the singular, out of respect for TLG*.

It may seem a rather silly thing, but here's why we really do need to use it more(although calling people out on the plural isn't really that nice of a thing to do. Wait for a moment to bring it up gently.).

Trademarks are a hard thing to protect. Multiple times, a company has made an innovation and come up with a clever name, only to lose the copyright on it because it entered public use too much. If LEGO in lowercase with an s becomes even more common use than it is, and people keep using it as a catch-all for interlocking brick toys, "certain companies" with vastly inferior products could go before the courts and say "Look at all of these people talking about our products with the word ____. ____ has become a generic term, and LEGO shouldn't be allowed to keep us from using it to talk about our products!"

How will this hurt LEGO? People will see companies using the term, and assume that they are made by LEGO, not understanding that they not only aren't, but that they have significantly lower production values. They will buy the toys, find them to break ridiculously fast, and then blame LEGO, instead of the companies that actually made the bricks.

*That does not mean that I agree with all of their business moves, merely that I support their trademark.

Edited August 18, 2014 by Lind Whisperer

[CP5670]

I write Lego as a singular noun. LEGO looks odd, as if it's an acronym for something, and Lego bricks is too wordy (and as someone else said, a brick refers to a specific kind of Lego piece).

TLG has been making a fuss over what they want people to say for a long time, but I honestly couldn't care less. I'm their customer, not their marketeer.

Edited August 18, 2014 by CP5670

[BirdOPrey5]

The fact a company launches a new word into public use should be something to be proud of- not cry over.

Edited August 18, 2014 by BirdOPrey5

[Ardelon]

The fact a company launches a new word into public use should be something to be proud of- not cry over.

Sure, until it starts having negative consequences on sales. I think its natural that TLG wants to protect its brand name, its not just a random whim, and wouldnt call it "crying over" the issue.

[DPrime]

This just reminds me of the "Cul-de-sacs" vs "Culs-de-sac" debate from Gilmore Girls (or for a more modern debate, "forums" vs "fora"). To be honest, I prefer using Lego to LEGO, as it seems less pedantic and dramatic, and looks normal in a piece of text, not to mention, when people write in full capitals, it seems to me they are either "shouting" the word, or it is an acronym that stands for something.

This is essentially my position.

BrickG, I really liked your posts! Good to put things into perspective...