Overview
This lecture covers eight essential rules for capitalization in English writing, focusing on when to use capital letters for different types of words.
Basic Capitalization Rules
- Always capitalize the first word of a sentence.
- Capitalize names and other proper nouns, such as people, cities, countries, companies, religions, and political parties.
- Capitalize words like "Mom" and "Grandma" when used as a form of address.
Capitalization After Colons
- Do not capitalize the first word after a colon, except when it is a proper noun or starts a complete sentence.
Capitalization in Quotes
- Capitalize the first word of a complete-sentence quote.
- Do not capitalize the first word of partial quotes.
Days, Months, and Holidays
- Capitalize the names of days, months, and holidays.
- Do not capitalize the names of seasons.
Title Capitalization
- In titles, capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs, all adjectives, and all proper nouns.
- Lowercase articles, conjunctions, and prepositions, unless some style guides require capitalization of conjunctions and prepositions longer than five letters.
Cities, Countries, Nationalities, and Languages
- Capitalize the names of cities, countries, nationalities, and languages.
Historical Periods and Events
- Capitalize names of specific time periods, eras, and historical events with proper names.
- Do not capitalize centuries and the numbers before them.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Proper noun — a specific name for a person, place, or thing that should be capitalized.
- Form of address — a word like "Mom" or "Grandma" used when directly talking to someone, which should be capitalized.
- Partial quote — a phrase or fragment from a source, not a full sentence.
- Title — the name of a book, movie, or work, with specific capitalization rules.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review your writing for correct capitalization using these eight rules.
- Visit grammarly.com for a writing tool to help check your grammar and capitalization.