Punctuation Department · Today with The Mayor

Capitalization

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Capitalization

The Mayor teaches this column himself. Work through each capitalization job below, then take the quiz.

Begin every sentence with a capital letter

The first word of a sentence begins with a capital letter, and the pronoun I is capitalized everywhere it appears. The sentence opens with the capital and closes with an end mark (see Officer Period).

In a sentence

Before the storm, I closed the windows.

Now you try

The first word always gets a capital. The word I does too, wherever it lands.

Capitalize the names of specific things

A nationality is a proper adjective when it describes someone (my grandfather is Italian), and the name of a language is a proper noun (she is learning Spanish). Specific historical periods (the Renaissance) and the important words in the name of a document (the Constitution) are proper nouns too. Each one takes a capital letter.

In a sentence

My grandfather speaks Italian fluently.

We studied the Renaissance this term.

Now you try

A proper noun names a specific one. You could try Maria, Denver, Tuesday, or July.

Capitalize the important words in a title

In the title of a work, capitalize the first word, the last word, and all the important words. Short words such as articles, conjunctions, and prepositions (a, an, the, and, or, of, in) stay lowercase unless they are the first or last word.

In a sentence

Our class read The Sign of the Beaver.

Now you try

Capitalize the first word, the last word, and every important word; small words like a, the, and of stay lowercase.

A capital marks what is special

A capital letter begins a sentence, marks a proper noun, and opens the important words in a title. In every job it marks the word as specific or important.

In a sentence

In France, many people speak French.

Now you try

A sentence start, a name, or a title word. Each capital marks something special.