{"id":12931,"date":"2014-02-04T21:05:29","date_gmt":"2014-02-04T21:05:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/?page_id=12931"},"modified":"2026-03-25T11:54:25","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T16:54:25","slug":"capitalization","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/capitalization\/","title":{"rendered":"Capitalization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t\t\t<div id=\"mmDeferVideoEncompass_OGtqvl49q18\" style=\"position: relative;\">\n\t\t\t<picture>\n\t\t\t\t<source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/circle-play-duotone.webp\" type=\"image\/webp\">\n\t\t\t\t<source srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/circle-play-duotone.png\" type=\"image\/jpeg\"> \n\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"eager\" id=\"videoThumbnailImage_OGtqvl49q18\" data-source-videoID=\"OGtqvl49q18\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/circle-play-duotone.png\" alt=\"Capitalization Video\" height=\"464\" width=\"825\" class=\"size-full\" data-matomo-title = \"Capitalization\">\n\t\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<style>img#videoThumbnailImage_OGtqvl49q18:hover {cursor:pointer;} img#videoThumbnailImage_OGtqvl49q18 {background-size:contain;background-image:url(\"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/85-thumb-final-1.webp\");}<\/style>\n\t\t\t<script defer>\n\t\t\t  jQuery(\"img#videoThumbnailImage_OGtqvl49q18\").click(function() {\n\t\t\t\tlet videoId = jQuery(this).attr(\"data-source-videoID\");\n\t\t\t\tlet helpTag = '<div id=\"mmDeferVideoYTMessage_OGtqvl49q18\" style=\"display: none;position: absolute;top: -24px;width: 100%;text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-style: italic;font-size: small;border-top: 1px solid #fc0;\">Having trouble? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v='+videoId+'\" target=\"_blank\">Click here to watch on YouTube.<\/a><\/span><\/div>';\n\t\t\t\tlet tag = document.createElement(\"iframe\");\n\t\t\t\ttag.id = \"yt\" + videoId;\n\t\t\t\ttag.src = \"https:\/\/www.youtube-nocookie.com\/embed\/\" + videoId + \"?autoplay=1&controls=1&wmode=opaque&rel=0&egm=0&iv_load_policy=3&hd=0&enablejsapi=1\";\n\t\t\t\ttag.frameborder = 0;\n\t\t\t\ttag.allow = \"autoplay; fullscreen\";\n\t\t\t\ttag.width = this.width;\n\t\t\t\ttag.height = this.height;\n\t\t\t\ttag.setAttribute(\"data-matomo-title\",\"Capitalization\");\n\t\t\t\tjQuery(\"div#mmDeferVideoEncompass_OGtqvl49q18\").html(tag);\n\t\t\t\tjQuery(\"div#mmDeferVideoEncompass_OGtqvl49q18\").prepend(helpTag);\n\t\t\t\tsetTimeout(function(){jQuery(\"div#mmDeferVideoYTMessage_OGtqvl49q18\").css(\"display\", \"block\");}, 2000);\n\t\t\t  });\n\t\t\t  \n\t\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t\n<p><script>\nfunction pR8_Function() {\n  var x = document.getElementById(\"pR8\");\n  if (x.style.display === \"none\") {\n    x.style.display = \"block\";\n  } else {\n    x.style.display = \"none\";\n  }\n}\n<\/script><\/p>\n<div class=\"moc-toc hide-on-desktop hide-on-tablet\">\n<div><button onclick=\"pR8_Function()\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/toc2.svg\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"show or hide table of contents\"><\/button><\/p>\n<p>On this page<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<nav id=\"pR8\" style=\"display:none;\">\n<ul>\n<li class=\"toc-h2\"><a href=\"#First_Word_of_a_Sentence\" class=\"smooth-scroll\">First Word of a Sentence<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"toc-h2\"><a href=\"#The_Pronoun_%E2%80%9CI%E2%80%9D\" class=\"smooth-scroll\">The Pronoun \u201cI\u201d<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"toc-h2\"><a href=\"#Proper_Nouns\" class=\"smooth-scroll\">Proper Nouns<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"toc-h2\"><a href=\"#Titles_in_a_Name\" class=\"smooth-scroll\">Titles in a Name<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"toc-h2\"><a href=\"#Titles_of_works\" class=\"smooth-scroll\">Titles of works<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"toc-h2\"><a href=\"#Other_Rules\" class=\"smooth-scroll\">Other Rules<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"accordion\"><input id=\"transcript\" type=\"checkbox\" class=\"spoiler_button\" \/><label for=\"transcript\">Transcript<\/label>\n<div class=\"spoiler\" id=\"transcript-spoiler\">\n<p>Hi, and welcome to this video about capitalization!<\/p>\n<p>Today, we\u2019ll be reviewing the most common capitalization rules in English and using some examples to see how to apply them. Let\u2019s get started!<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"First_Word_of_a_Sentence\" class=\"m-toc-anchor\"><\/span>First Word of a Sentence<\/h2>\n<p>\nOften, one of the first rules that people learn is that the first word in a sentence should always be capitalized; it doesn\u2019t matter if the sentence is a statement, a question, or an exclamation. Super simple.<\/p>\n<div class=\"transcriptcallout\">The first color you picked was the best.<\/p>\n<p>I wish this book was about something more exciting.<\/p>\n<p>Did you see the video I posted?<\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 0em;\">This is the best ice cream I\u2019ve ever had!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>The Pronoun &#8220;I&#8221;<\/h2>\n<p>\nAnother easy rule to remember is that the pronoun <em>I<\/em> will always be capitalized, even if it appears in the middle of a sentence.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Proper_Nouns\" class=\"m-toc-anchor\"><\/span>Proper Nouns<\/h2>\n<p>\nProper nouns are also always capitalized. Remember, a proper noun is a noun that refers to a specific person, place, or organization. This includes things like titles, company names, sports teams, political groups, and more.<\/p>\n<p>For example, in this sentence, <em>Kyle<\/em> is capitalized, because it&#8217;s a name that refers to a specific person. Here, <em>Pointville High School<\/em> is capitalized because it&#8217;s the name of a specific school. Now, in <em>these<\/em> examples, you wouldn\u2019t capitalize <em>school<\/em> or <em>store<\/em>, because those words aren\u2019t naming a specific place.<\/p>\n<p>This same rule applies when you refer to family members by their family title, like \u201cmom,\u201d \u201cdad,\u201d or \u201cgrandma.\u201d Let\u2019s take the word <em>mom<\/em>, for instance. If you wrote, \u201cI asked Mom to drive us to the mall,\u201d the word <em>mom<\/em> would be capitalized, because it\u2019s acting as the name of a specific person; it\u2019s a proper noun. However, if you wrote, \u201cMy <em>mom<\/em> works at an insurance company,\u201d the word mom would not be capitalized. In this case, <em>mom<\/em> is referring to her relationship to you as a family member; it\u2019s not referring to her by name.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Titles_in_a_Name\" class=\"m-toc-anchor\"><\/span>Titles in a Name<\/h2>\n<p>\nTitles that <em>precede<\/em> names work in a very similar way. They are capitalized when they\u2019re part of a person\u2019s name, but not when they\u2019re used as descriptors. Take the word <em>mayor<\/em>, for instance. You would capitalize <em>mayor<\/em> in the sentence \u201cMayor Bob Jones will be speaking at 1 pm,\u201d because it\u2019s part of his name. However, if you wrote, \u201cBob Jones, mayor of Huntsville, will be speaking at 1 pm,\u201d you would not capitalize <em>mayor<\/em>, because it\u2019s not part of the name of a specific person.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Titles_of_works\" class=\"m-toc-anchor\"><\/span>Titles of works<\/h2>\n<p>\nTitles of <em>published<\/em> works are a bit more difficult. If you\u2019ve ever had to reference the title of a book, article, or other written work, chances are you\u2019ve gotten stuck trying to remember which words to capitalize and which ones to leave uncapitalized. The rule for this is pretty simple: capitalize all the major words except prepositions or articles, unless it is the first word of the title. Here are a few examples.<\/p>\n<div class=\"transcriptcallout\"><em>The Catcher in the Rye<\/p>\n<p>A Tale of Two Cities<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"margin-bottom: 0em;\"><em>The Light Between Oceans<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n&nbsp;<br \/>\nNotice that the only prepositions and articles in these titles that are capitalized are the ones at the very beginning; all of the others are lowercase. All of the other words are considered important, so they are capitalized.<\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Other_Rules\" class=\"m-toc-anchor\"><\/span>Other Rules<\/h2>\n<p>\nHere are a few more super quick rules before we move on:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Capitalize days of the week<\/li>\n<li>Capitalize holidays<\/li>\n<li> Capitalize months<\/li>\n<li>Capitalize directional regions of countries (Northeast, Southwest, Midwest, etc.) but not compass directions (drive two miles north and turn west)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Okay, now that we\u2019ve looked at words you should always capitalize, let\u2019s take a look at some that you should never capitalize unless they\u2019re the first word of a sentence or appear in a title.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Capitalize days of the week<\/li>\n<li> Do not capitalize the names of seasons (winter, spring, summer, autumn)<\/li>\n<li>Do not capitalize the names of elements (oxygen, magnesium, nitrogen, etc.)<\/li>\n<li>Do not capitalize general animal names unless a proper adjective is included. For instance, you wouldn\u2019t capitalize &#8220;black bear&#8221; or &#8220;red panda,&#8221; but you would capitalize the G in &#8220;German shepherd.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>Do not capitalize the word the before proper nouns unless the article is part of the proper noun.<\/li>\n<li>Do not capitalize the first word that comes after a colon or semicolon.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are many, many more rules and exceptions to rules that I haven\u2019t mentioned; these are simply the most commonly used rules. <\/p>\n<p>I hope this video was helpful! Thanks for watching, and happy studying!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"home-buttons\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/parts-of-a-sentence\/\">Return to Parts of a Sentence Videos<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Return to Parts of a Sentence Videos<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":97825,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-12931","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"page_category-parts-of-a-sentence-videos","7":"page_category-video-pages-for-study-course-sidebar-ad","8":"page_category-writing-videos","9":"page_type-video","10":"subject_matter-english"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12931"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12931\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":290062,"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12931\/revisions\/290062"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mometrix.com\/academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}