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Capitalization

Capitalization. Capitals. Use a capital letter to begin a sentence Use a capital letter for proper nouns Use capitals for some abbreviations Use capitals in salutations and closings in business letters. To Begin a Sentence.

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Capitalization

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  1. Capitalization

  2. Capitals • Use a capital letter to begin a sentence • Use a capital letter for proper nouns • Use capitals for some abbreviations • Use capitals in salutations and closings in business letters

  3. To Begin a Sentence • Use a capital letter to begin a sentence including a sentence in quotation marks. • It was inevitable that the business would succeed. • Professor Duncan said, “Reading literature is a great way to learn about other people and cultures.”

  4. A Quote that is not a Sentence • However, don’t begin quote with a capital when the quote is not a sentence and is only a group of words. A sentence must have a subject, proper verb, and complete a thought. • Professor Duncan said that students can “learn about other people and cultures.”  • Here is another example of a quote where a few words are quoted as part of the sentence. • Professor Duncan said that “reading literature is a great way to learn about other people and cultures.” 

  5. Names of People and Places • Use a capital for names of people and places. • The pronoun I is always capitalized. • Use a capital letter for names of people, places (including geographic areas), and pets: • John Goodman • America • St. Louis, Missouri • the West (the geographic location, not the direction) • Sun Valley • Grandma Sara, Uncle Fred (names of family relations) • Mother, Father (when used in place of a name) • Fido

  6. Names of Planets, Months, Days • Use a capital for the names of planets, months of the year, and days of the week since they are named after gods and goddesses or important rulers. • For example, • Mars is the Roman god of war. • June is named after Juno, the wife of Jupiter. • Thursday is Thor’s day.

  7. Capitals for Nationalities, Cultures, and Religions • Use a capital for nationalities, cultures, and religious affiliations: • American, Chinese • Hispanic, Latino • Jewish, Muslim • Even when these describe something: • Chinese food • French wine • Use a capital for names of religious texts: • Bible • Koran • New Testament

  8. Capitals in Organizations, Television Shows, and More • Capitalize the first letter of each word in names of organizations, television shows and series,  names of artwork, buildings, structures, and boats, planes, and trains. (Note: Don’t capitalize words such as the, a, and, for unless they are the first word) • United Way • People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals • Friends • Mona Lisa • Statue of Liberty • USS Enterprise • Orient Express • (Note that the names of television shows [a long published work], artwork, structure or building, ship, or railroad are also in italics)

  9. Capitals in Titles • Titles of movies, books, articles, and websites • Capitalize the first letter and all other words except articles (a, and, the), prepositions (such as  to, of, at, in, with, for), and coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS – for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).  • Tess of the D’Urbevilles – a book (italics are used for long, published works such as a book, newspaper, journal, or website)

  10. Capitals in titles in MLA and APA • Special rules for titles in MLA and APA style: • In MLA and APA style, in the body of the paper, use the standard rule as explained above including the use of italics and quotation marks.  • In the Works Cited page of an MLA paper, the rule is also the same for how to list titles.  However, in the References page of an APA paper, only the first letter of the title is capitalized and no quotation marks are used.

  11. Capitals in Some Abbreviations • Use capitals in some abbreviations • When the first letter of a series of words in a title is used: • IBM  (International Business Machines) • NATO (North American Treaty Organization) • MD (medical doctor) Note that there are no periods. • A.M. and P.M. (common usage including GED) (Also abbreviated without periods and small letters as in MLA style: a.m. and p.m.)

  12. Capitals in Salutations and Closings • Use capitals in salutations and closings in business letters • The salutation is the opening greeting such as Dear Mrs. Jones, Dear Sir or Madam, or To Whom It May Concern. • Note that each word begins with a capital.  In the letter itself, you should not use italics.  Italics are use here since one of the rules of italics is for when a word is used as a word and not for the meaning of the word. Do not italicize in a letter. 

  13. Capitals in Salutations and Closings • The closing at the end with words such as Yours truly or Sincerely yours.  • Note that only the first letter of the first word is capitalized unlike the salutation.  Again, italics are used here only because we are referring to the words as words.  You should not use italics in an actual letter.

  14. When not to capitalize: • Seasons (fall, spring, summer, winter) are not capitalized. • Directions (east, west, north, south). • Names of family members are not capitalized unless they are used as names: • It was clear that my mother made dinner. • It was clear that Mother made dinner. (Mother is used as a name.) • My aunt came with us. • My Aunt Ann came with us.

  15. Names of Professions and Areas of Study • Names of professions or areas of study are not proper nouns and should not have the first letter capitalized. • He went for a degree in psychology. • She wanted to go into teaching. • Their friend became a forensic biologist. • They studied math.

  16. Names of Professions and Areas of Study • However, if part of a formal title or job title, then the same words would be capitalized. • He enrolled in Psychology 101. • He accepted a position in the Department of Philosophy. • She was promoted to Assistant Technician. • Also, the names of languages are capitalized. • She liked English best. • He found French difficult.

  17. Names of Diseases • Names of diseases are not proper nouns and should not have the first letter capitalized unless a person’s name is part of the name of the disease. • Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with cardiovascular disease right after his mother was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

  18. Recognizing a Proper Noun • Sometimes, it is difficult to recognize what a proper noun is since words used in a general way are not proper nouns.  However, the same words become proper nouns when they are part of a title. • I went to high school. • I went to Gulf High School. • If you cannot decide if a word is a proper noun, look it up in the dictionary to see if it is capitalized there.

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