Go and check out the words “google,” “googled” or “googling” in the online Merriam-Webster dictionary and for sure you’ll find them. Yes, people have been using these words in informal conversations for so long now but what they’re using was technically a slang, or jargon of those regularly hooked to the Internet or more precisely, those frequently using Google.

But now officially, the word “google” is accepted as a transitive verb and is approved by different English-language dictionaries. It means “to use the Google search engine to obtain information about (as a person) on the World Wide Web.” Inflected forms of the verb are googled and googling. Along with “google,” new science and technology terms like agritourism, biodiesel, mouse potato, ringtone and spyware are likewise now accepted in the English-language dictionaries.

Could it be something good for Google? History tells us that pervasive use of a product name isn’t good. Classic examples are Aspirin, Xerox and Band-Aid, which faced serious and controversial trademark issues.

By guest writer Khristine