This research seeks to address identified gaps in knowledge on generic terms in the United States toponymy. The study area comprises the continental states of the United States. Our corpus is constituted by toponyms drawn from the Geographical Names Information System database. The lexicalized generic terms included in our study are: butte, chute, coteau, coulee, plateau, portage, prairie, and rapid/rapids. To achieve a greater precision in identifying the borrowed terms, hybrid toponyms— i.e., geographical names formed with French generic terms and specific terms in languages other than French—were selected for detailed analysis. At the end of this study, we noted a relative scarcity, and absence in some cases, of geographical names formed with French generic terms in the New England states. Place names formed of these generic terms are most strongly present in western states. They are also more prevalent in the northern than in the southern states.