Capitalization Rules

1. Capitalize the first letter of the first word in a sentence.

We walked along the path to the lake. Did you bring the camera? Tie the boat to the dock. The water is freezing!

Rule #1

bill left on the afternoon bus. do you recognize that girl? please go away. stop!

2. Capitalize the pronoun I.

Should I call you later? I think I’ll call at six o’clock. Louis and I shall both call you. Oops, I just remembered…I’m

grounded from the phone.

Rule #2

i don’t understand this assignment.

May Susan and i work together? Mrs. Jones said, “i don’t think

that’s a good idea.” But i’ll make sure we are quiet.

3. Capitalize the first letter of the first word in most lines of poetry.

Roses are red, Violets are blue, Sugar is sweet, And I am too!

#3

there was a young lady named Rose

who had a large wart on her nose. when she had it removed her appearance improved, but her glasses slipped down to

her toes.

4. Capitalize the first word, the last word, and all important words in any title. Do not capitalize a, an, the, and, but, or, nor, or prepositons of four of fewer letters unless they are the first or last word of a title.

The Little Prince Gone with the Wind “Happy Birthday” “Ghost of the Lagoon”

#4

lord of the rings “summer of fire” of mice and men a roman villa

5. Capitalize people’s names and their initial(s).

George W. Bush Cathy Melissa Thurmond Dr. Richard Smith T. J. Duckett

#5

chris tovani red riding hood john paul jones richard m. nixon

6. Capitalize days, months, holidays, and special days.

Tuesday July Arbor Day Christmas Eve

#6

sunday january veterans day hanukkah

7. Capitalize Mother, Dad, and other titles if you can insert the person’s name

Has Dad gone to the store? We all know that Uncle Duane tells

crazy stories.But don’t capitalize when names or

titles are used like:My dad has gone to the store.Our uncle tells crazy stories.

#7

aunt susan my grandma cousin fred your father

8. Capitalize names of organizations.

Boy Scouts of America American Red Cross North Atlantic Treaty Organization National Organization for Women

#8

kiwanis club national honor society organization of states welcome wagon club

9. Capitalize the names of institutions.

Boston College Berkmar High School Grady Hospital Fulton County Jail

#9

university of georgiagwinnett medical centerberkmar middle schoolsmithson school of design

10. Capitalize business names.

Delta Airlines Posada Restaurant Holiday Inn Kroger

#10

foot locker pizza hut jen’s hallmark shop barnes and noble

11. Capitalize the names of structures.

Washington Tunnel London Bridge Leaning Tower of Pisa Cumberland Expressway

#11

statue of liberty white house lincoln memorial eiffel tower

12. Capitalize the names of specific geographic places

Indian Ocean Pocono Mountains Fulton County Midwest

#12

cape cod gulf of mexico germany great salt lake

13. Capitalize the names of historical events and historical documents.

American Revolution Battle of Shiloh Declaration of Independence U. S. Constitution

#13

war between the states gettysburg address treaty of paris battle of the buldge

14. Capitalize the names of languages.

French Spanish Russian English

#14

italian mandarin chinese german arabic

15. Capitalize the Roman numerals and the letters of the first major topics in an outline. Capitalize only the first word in an outline unless the words are a proper noun.

#15.

I. Oceans and seas A. Major oceans B. Major seasII. Land forms A. Western hemisphere continents

1. North America 2. South America B. Eastern hemisphere continents

16. Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation. Do not capitalize the word following the quotation unless it is a proper noun.

Harvey asked, “How old are you?” “I am ten,” sad Jodi. You look older,” Harvey said. Jodi replied, “Everyone says that.”

#16

mrs. logan said, “here is your test.” “how did I make a 56?” asked terry. “you missed a lot of question,” mrs.

logan replied. my dad is going to ground me for

the rest of my life,” cried terry.

17. Capitalize brand names but not the products.

Ford van Mayfield ice cream Sony computer disc Bar S hot dogs

#17

lay’s potato chips nike tennis shoes liz claiborne dress harley davidson motorcycle

18. Capitalize religions, religious documents, names of churches, and names for a supreme being.

Christian (religion) Heavenly Father (reference to

God) Talmud (writings of Jewish religion) Palmcroft Baptist Church

19. Capitalize a proper adjective but not the noun it modifies.

A California beach A Payson music festival A Memorial Day parade An African nation

#19

greek god english muffin christmas vacation shakespearian theater

20. Capitalize the first world of a greeting and closing of a letter.

My dearest friendSincerely yours

Capitalize directions when they refer to a region of a country or the world

Georgia is in the South. He lives in China which is also

called the East. BUT…… Georgia is south of Tennessee.