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Tolanator t1_j9euixh wrote

Reply to comment by st3akkn1fe in TIL of Macadam roads. These roads were convex, raised a few inches, and made of layered crushed rock; they were state-of-the-art for the 19th century. The rise of automobiles led to the dust issues that were solved by binding the roads with tar, leading to the invention of tarmac. by jamescookenotthatone

They’re talking about this tarmac.

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st3akkn1fe t1_j9ev5ew wrote

Yeah I know. They meant tarmacadam which is different to tarmac

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Tolanator t1_j9evujc wrote

Tarmac is short for tarmacadam.

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st3akkn1fe t1_j9ew9r2 wrote

Yes, which is probably why they called their company it.

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Tolanator t1_j9ewrjr wrote

Aye but it’s more commonly known as being the short form of tarmacadam and used colloquially to refer to any type of blacktop road.

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st3akkn1fe t1_j9ex6e1 wrote

Yeah but that's wrong isn't it? Like calling all vacuum cleaners a hoover when hoover is the brand.

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Tolanator t1_j9eykfj wrote

Nope, neither are wrong, but for different reasons. With hoover, the brand became so dominant at one time that it's name was synonymous with the product. With tarmac, historically calling the road surface tarmac was correct and the name stuck, even though the process changed. That happens a lot with the English language, the name stays even if circumstances change. Another example is movie trailers, they were so-called because they were previews of coming attractions that were shown at the end of a film, or in other words they would "trail" a film. The name stuck even though today they are shown before a movie or even screened independently. Words endure even when meanings change.

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Psycko_90 t1_j9f32j6 wrote

Is using the term PC instead of Personal Computer wrong?

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Charlielx t1_j9ghtn6 wrote

Abbreviation is not the same as genericization

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