# Should Google Used As A Verb Be Capitalized? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 11, 2010, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310 "2010-07-11T16:31:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/1 "2010-07-11T16:31:32Z")
I’m thinking no…But I thought I’d ask For instance, if I say “What is the capital of Burkina Faso”? Please answer and do not google (or Google) the answer. Well that’s actually a bad example 'cause everyone knows the capital of Burkina Faso is Ouagadougou. And before anyone says “You shouldn’t be using Google as a verb” well even if that was true, people still do it. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/2 "2010-07-11T16:54:00Z")
No. Proper nouns turned into verbs are not capitalized. Consider “boycott.” ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/3 "2010-07-11T17:13:49Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > No. Proper nouns turned into verbs are not capitalized. > > Consider “boycott.” I’m not sure of the answer to the OP, but that is not a good example. Yes [boycott](http://www.thefreedictionary.com/boycott) is derived from Charles Boycott, but the noun is no longer used to refer to that particular person, and so even as a noun it is not capitalized. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/4 "2010-07-11T17:23:55Z")
I agree that “boycott” is not the most relevant example. Here’s [one cite](http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-TRADEMARK.html) that at least lends some support to not capitalizing the verb. > [@](#): > > Trademark names used as verbs are a further area of difficulty, both generally and in lexicography. One solution adopted by publishers of dictionaries is to regard the verb forms as generic, with a small initial letter: that is, Xerox (noun), but xerox (verb). ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/5 "2010-07-11T17:41:02Z")
The verb “boycott” was not capitalized even when Boycott was around. And there are plenty of additional examples: orient, taser, mimeograph, videotape, yo-yo, zipper, photoshop, etc. Verbs are just not capitalized, except at the beginning of the sentence or in other odd cases when standard rules of grammar require it (e.g., in titles). If a proper noun becomes a verb, it loses capitalization. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/6 "2010-07-12T03:26:23Z")
Pretty much any form of generalization of proper nouns becomes lower case: 1. verbing of a noun ala photosopping 2. euphemistic noun ala a boycott 3. generalization of a trademark ala coke for soda 4. wordification of an acronym ala laser etc… ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/7 "2010-07-12T03:35:05Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Verbs are just not capitalized, except at the beginning of the sentence or in other odd cases when standard rules of grammar require it (e.g., in titles). If a proper noun becomes a verb, it loses capitalization. What if you’re trying to MacGyver something? ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/8 "2010-07-12T04:19:03Z")
Burking was sort of another proper noun to verb. William Burke and William Hare used to get their victim drunk and sit on their chest to asphyxiate them. It is referred to as burking from Mr Burke ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/9 "2010-07-12T04:41:15Z")
Other examples are _lynch_, from William Lynch, _gerrymander_, from Elbridge Gerry, \*bowdlerize, \* from Thomas Bowdler, and _guillotine_, from Joseph Guillotin. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-google-used-as-a-verb-be-capitalized/546310/10 "2010-07-12T05:54:31Z")
> [@jackdavinci](#): > > 1. euphemistic noun ala a boycott Eponymous?