Capitalization Rules

WHEN ARE CAPITALS APPROPRIATE, and when are they not appropriate? If you haven't noticed, capitalization varies somewhat from publication to publication. But there are some universal rules about capitalization which almost every publication, whether it be a newspaper or magazine or novel, generally follow without exception. The following list will attempt to point out these generally accepted capitalization rules: 1. Always capitalize the first word of every sentence. 2. Always capitalize the pronoun "I" o The last time I visited Atlanta was several years ago. 2. Capitalize the first word of every direct quotation. o John said, "The first thing I want to do is eat." o "William is my friend," he said, "but John is not." ("but" is not capitalized because it doesn't start a new sentence.) o "We eat at six," he said. "Late comers will not be fed." ("Late" is capitalized because it starts a new sentence.) 3. Always capitalize the first word and the last word of every title. The words in between are also capitalized unless they are prepositions (of, from, to, for, etc.), short connecting words, the to in front of a verb, or the articles: a, an, the. 4. Always capitalize the names of people (except names like e.e. cummings), places, and languages/races/nationalities. o John, Uncle Roger, Aunt Martha, Marsha, Dr. Bob, etc. o Taft, Los Angeles, Lake Isabella, Russia, South America, etc. o English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, etc. 5. Always capitalize the names of the months, the days of the week, and special days such as holidays, but not the seasons of the year (fall, winter, spring, summer). o January, February, March, April, May, etc. o Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc. o Valentines Day, Fourth of July, Christmas, Columbus Day, etc. 6. Always capitalize a "title of relationship" it it takes the place of the person's name or is used as part of the person's name. If a pronoun such as "my" is in front of the word, a capital is not used. o I had dinner with Uncle Bill. But...I had dinner with my uncle. o I went with Mother to the store. But...I went with my mother to the store. o I spoke with Dad last night. But...I spoke with my dad last night and her mother last night. 7. Always capitalize the names of particular people or things, but never general ones. o I had dinner with Doctor Smith. But...I had dinner with the doctor. o I swam in the Kern River. But...I swam in the river and fished in the lake. o I signed up for Science 14A and History 17B. But...I signed up for science and history. o I am taking history and math along with English and Spanish. (notice that English and Spanish are capitalized because while they are not the names of specific courses, they are the formal names of languages.) o I graduated from Hart High School. But...I graduated from high school. o I went to the University of the Pacific. But...I went to the university. o He goes to Taft College. But...He goes to college. 8. Always capitalize East, West, South, and/or North if they are locations, but never capitalize them if they are directions. o I used to live in the East. But...I live east of Los Angeles. o Go west, young man, go west. But...I live in the Western part of the United States. o He went in a westerly direction; I used to live in Eastern Montana. 9. Always capitalize The names of God, specific deities, religious figures, and holy books

o o o o o o o o

God the Father the Virgin Mary the Bible the Greek gods Moses Shiva Buddha Zeus

Exception: Do not capitalize the non-specific use of the word "god." o The word "polytheistic" means the worship of more than one god. 10. Always capitalize periods and events (but not century numbers) o o o o Victorian Era Great Depression Constitutional Convention sixteenth century

Exercise in Capitalization
Each of the eighty spaces below is preceded by an "opportunity for error" in capitalization. If the word is capitalized correctly, write a C in the space; if it is incorrect, write an I (use capital letters). The tab key will take you from space to space. When you're finished, click on the "submit application" at the bottom of the page and the computer will check your answers. 1. Dr. Goldberger traveled through the Southern part of pennsylvania to get to the conference on victorian poetry . 2. Many of the students in the introduction to Microcomputers course at the university of hartford last fall preferred using macintosh Computers rather than the pc's provided in the Lab . 3. My favorite uncle , my Father's brother, wrote a famous book on the role of buddha in Herman Hesse's novel siddhartha . 4. "Wait," He said, "Until the Huskies have won a few games." 5. The secretary of the Society of Concerned Students wrote to the Ambassador of south Africa . 6. On the fourth of July , we celebrate the war of Independence ; on labor Day , we celebrate the contributions of Organized Labor to American life. 7. My mother asked Mayor Pete a question about scandinavian immigration. 8. I'll never forget reading the Last Of The Mohicans when I was in Mrs. Turveydrop's high school English class. 9. Didwell somehow managed to get an A in his Physics course, but he failed History 104. 10. I think that lake Superior is the largest and the most Northern of the great lakes . 11. Clerihew is a classical studies major, but his favorite course is in french history . 12. News of the grant was announced by President Chauncey Bedouin, who used to be president of Breadwidth university . 13. Dogsbreath played baseball until he came down with Measles .

14. Last spring , sometime in late March , I believe, Grillbody heard that he had been awarded a Fulbright fellowship . 15. Tashonda earned a master's degree in business before she went on for a Ph.D. in Economics . 16. Most 20th-Century art leaves me cold, but I love the the French impressionists and the nineteenthcentury british landscape painters. .

Exercise in Capitalization
Each of the eighty spaces below is preceded by an "opportunity for error" in capitalization. If the word is capitalized correctly, write a C in the space; if it is incorrect, write an I (use capital letters). The tab key will take you from space to space. When you're finished, click on the "submit application" at the bottom of the page and the computer will check your answers. 1. Dr. Goldberger traveled through the Southern on victorian poetry . to Microcomputers course at the university Computers rather than the pc's of provided part of pennsylvania to get to the conference

2. Many of the students in the introduction hartford in the Lab last fall .

preferred using macintosh

3. My favorite uncle

, my Father's .

brother, wrote a famous book on the role of buddha

in

Herman Hesse's novel siddhartha 4. "Wait," He 5. The secretary south Africa said, "Until

the Huskies

have won a few games." Students wrote to the Ambassador of

of the Society . of July

of Concerned

6. On the fourth

, we celebrate the war Labor

of Independence to American

; on labor life. immigration.

Day

we celebrate the contributions of Organized 7. My mother asked Mayor Pete Last

a question about scandinavian Of English The Mohicans

8. I'll never forget reading the Turveydrop's high school

when I was in Mrs.

class. course, but he failed History of the great 104. lakes . .

9. Didwell somehow managed to get an A 10. I think that lake Superior

in his Physics

is the largest and the most Northern

11. Clerihew is a classical

studies

major, but his favorite course is in french

history

12. News of the grant was announced by President of Breadwidth university .

Chauncey Bedouin, who used to be president

13. Dogsbreath played baseball 14. Last spring Fulbright

until he came down with Measles

, sometime in late March . degree

, I believe, Grillbody heard that he had been awarded a

fellowship

15. Tashonda earned a master's Economics .

in business

before she went on for a Ph.D.

in

16. Most 20th-Century nineteenthcentury

art leaves me cold, but I love the the French impressionists british landscape painters. .

and the