CapitalizationMichalina Florio, Alison Spinner, Ian Dudar, and

Tommy Blumentritt

I is a pronoun that is always capitalized.

Ex.) I am very good at making sandwiches.

Ex.) I realized that I left my notebook at home.

The word I

The first letter of the first word of each sentence is always capitalized.

Capitalize the first letter in the following types of sentences.

Sentences

Declarative example: some people like to go swimming

everyday.

Interrogative example: where did the dog put his bone?

Imperative example: go clean up your room before your friend

gets here.

Exclamatory example: that is such a huge accomplishment!

A direct quotation, or a person’s exact words, also needs a capital letter to begin the quotation.

Capitalize the first letter in the first word in a quotation.

Ex.) The leader shouted, “Welcome to camp!”

Quotations

When a quotation is split into two parts in a sentence, capitalize the first part only.

Ex.) “When will you be ready,” asked Alison, “to go to the party?”

Capitalize the first word of each sentence if the quotation contains more than one sentence.

Ex.) “Please hand out the napkins to everyone,” said Michalina. “The food is ready.”

Quotations

Capitalize all proper nouns including each part of a person’s full name and initials, geographical names, specific events, period of time, and documents. Also, capitalize regions.

Ex.) Ian Dudar T. D. Blumentritt Mississippi River We are going to the South. The Great Depression and the Great Recession The Gettysburg Address

Proper nouns

Map directions and seasons are not capitalized.

Ex.) We like summer. Ex.) Drive southeast.

Exceptions

The names of various organizations, government bodies, languages spoken by different groups, nationalities, and political parties are always capitalized.

Ex.) The Native Americans built a teepee. Ex.) The Girl Scouts sold me 300 boxes of

thin mints. Ex.) The University of Georgia is a great

school.

Specific groups

Capitalize all words related to religion and all the names of different religions.

Ex.) Christianity- God, Lord, Holy Spirit, Bible

Judaism- Torah, Prophets Islam- Allah, Qur’an

Religious references

Capitalize all specific places and items.

Monuments- Eiffel Tower Memorials- Lincoln Memorial Buildings- Leaning Tower of Pisa Awards- Oscar

Specific places and items

Most proper adjectives should be capitalized. Common nouns that are being modified by proper

adjectives are not capitalized.Ex.) American flag Canadian maple syrup Chinese buffet

Proper Adjectives

Brand names become proper adjectives when they describe a common noun.

Examples: Honey Nut Cheerios cereal Pillsbury cinnamon rolls

Brand names

Capitalize titles of a person when they are followed by the person’s name or are in place of a person’s name.

Examples: Doctor Flindublum has an appointment at

two o’clock. Colonel James is visiting us tomorrow.

Titles of people

Capitalize the titles of government officials when they precede the name of the official.

Examples: President Obama likes strawberry ice cream. Governor Mialiato prefers vanilla ice cream. Certain titles are always capitalized. Examples: The First Lady & Queen Mother of

England

Government officials

The title showing family relationship is capitalized when it is used when it comes in front of a person’s name or in place of a person.

Examples: Aunt Patricia has a twin named Fat Amy. Grandma Otailaim got run over by a

reindeer.

Family Relationships

The titles of books, newspapers, magazines, short stories, poems, plays, movies, songs, school courses (when it is followed by a course number or refers to a language), and artworks are capitalized. Capitalize all of the key words in the title. Do not capitalize articles, prepositions, or conjunctions unless they are four or more letters long.

Titles of Works

Examples: To Kill a Mockingbird People Magazine The Wall Street Journal Les Miserables Algebra l Spanish

Capitalize the street, city, state, and month in the heading.

Examples: May Glen Forest Drive Alabama Atlanta

Friendly and Business Letters

Capitalize the first word, any title, and the name of the person or group mentioned in the salutation. Also, in the closing, capitalize the first word.

Examples: Dear Ian Your friend,

Tommy Dear Doctor Connor

Salutations

Capitalize all abbreviations if the words or names they stand for are usually capitalized.

Examples: Dr. Tom Mrs. Mial

Abbreviations

Just like abbreviations, capitalize acronyms if the words they stand for are capitalized.

Examples: SSA- Social Security Act MRI- Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Acronyms

Capitalize the initials if the words or names they stand for are normally capitalized.

Examples: M. M. Florio A. N. Spinner

Initials