High degree
of inherent
distinctiveness
ARBITRARY
Arbitrary terms have meanings, but are applied in a way that the meaning has nothing to do with the associated products or services (APPLE® for computers and consumer electronic goods, AMAZON® for e-commerce).
COINED
Fanciful or coined terms are considered the strongest trademarks (GOOGLE® for internet search engine or Häagen-Dazs® for ice cream).
DESCRIPTIVE
Descriptive trademarks provide a clear description of the character or quality of the goods and services. Notably in Canada, geographic place names (even obscure or unknown places) are considered weak trademarks and are difficult to register, in the absence of any other meaning.
SUGGESTIVE
Suggestive trademarks convey some information about the nature, quality or other attribute of the goods or services. (WEIGHT WATCHERS® for weight loss programs). While there is a tendency to gravitate towards this kind of mark because they are generally catchy and easy to remember, this is usually not considered to be the strongest type of mark.
GENERIC
Generic words are the common names of the products or services (for example, “THE CAR WASH” for a car wash).
No or low inherent
distinctiveness
