Some degree of imagination is necessary to discover the nature of the goods or services associated with the mark. Suggestive marks are registrable without an affirmative showing of secondary meaning. While suggestive marks receive stronger protection than descriptive marks, the are not the best marks in terms of the strength of protection under the trademark laws. Arbitrary and fanciful marks receive the strongest protection and are registrable without any affirmative showing. They are given strong protection because such marks either are new words or represent unique uses of known words.
Arbitrary marks are marks that are applied in an unfamiliar way.
Fanciful marks are marks created solely for use as a trademark. They are commonly called newly-coined words. Likelihood of Confusion A mark is not registrable if when used it is likely to cause confusion with a previously used or registered mark. The likelihood of confusion is determined from the viewpoint of the relevant consuming public. Essentially, this means that the Trademark Office will not register a mark that it finds likely to cause confusion among consumers as to the affiliation or origin of the associated goods.