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A. Capitalize the first word in any sentence.
B. Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation.
Mr. Jackson said, “Your sister is her own worst enemy.”
Do not capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence fragment.
I agree with Mr. Jackson’s remark that my sister is “her own worst enemy.”
C. Capitalize proper nouns and proper adjectives.
A proper noun is the name of a particular person, place, or thing. The opposite of a proper noun is a common noun, which is not capitalized.
PROPER NOUNS COMMON NOUNS
James McCall man
Canada country
Ohio River river
A proper adjective is an adjective formed from a proper noun.
PROPER NOUNS PROPER ADJECTIVES
England English
Europe European
D. Capitalize the names of persons. E. Capitalize geographical names.
CITIES, TOWNSHIPS, COUNTIES, STATES, COUNTRIES, CONTINENTS: Garden City, Addison Township, Shelby County, Indiana, United States of America, North America
ISLANDS, PENINSULAS, STRAITS, BEACHES: Sea Island, Iberian Peninsula, Strait of Gibraltar, Daytona Beach
BODIES OF WATER: Shafer Lake, Lake Erie, Mississippi River, Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Hudson Bay
MOUNTAINS: Rocky Mountains, Pike’s Peak
STREETS: Miller Street, Washington Avenue, Forty-second Street, Haven Drive
PARKS, FORESTS, CANYONS, DAMS: Yosemite National Park, Hoosier National
Park, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam
RECOGNIZED SECTIONS OF THE COUNTRY OR WORLD: the South, the
Northwest, the Far East
F. Do not capitalize east, west, north, and south when they indicate directions. Do capitalize them when they refer to recognized sections of the country or world.
Turn east at the next corner.
You will see the store on the north side of the street. We were going south when the car hit us.
To understand America, visit the Middle West. We are going South for the winter.
G. Do not capitalize a word used with a proper noun or adjective unless the word is part of a name, in which case it is a proper noun.
The great city of Chicago, New York City; the valley of the Hudson, the Hudson
Valley; Chinese restaurant, Sing Lee’s Chinese Restaurant
Note: Do not capitalize such words as hotel, theater, church, high school, college, and
university unless they are part of a proper name.
Signature Inn Hotel a hotel in Indianapolis Purdue University a university in Indiana Shelbyville High School a high school textbook United States Post Office the local post office
BUILDINGS, BUSINESS FIRMS, AND BRAND NAMES OF BUSINESS PRODUCTS: Chrysler Building, American Airlines, Nike, Cheerios, Coca-Cola
CALENDAR ITEMS: Sunday, November, Christmas Eve, Labor Day
GOVERNMENT BODIES: Congress, House of Representatives, Securities and
Exchange Commission, Treasury Department
H. Do not capitalize the names of school subjects, except the languages. Course names followed by a number are usually capitalized.
English, French, Spanish, Latin, German, Italian, Japanese algebra, art, chemistry, biology
Algebra II, History III, Art 102, Biology I
Summary Style Sheet
Mexico City a city in Mexico
Twenty-ninth Street across the street
the South a mile south
Ford Motor Company an automobile company
the Freshman Class freshman classes
Principal Zobel Mr. Zobel, the principal
Don’t tell Mother Don’t tell my mother
Uncle Bill my uncle
B. Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation.
Mr. Jackson said, “Your sister is her own worst enemy.”
Do not capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence fragment.
I agree with Mr. Jackson’s remark that my sister is “her own worst enemy.”
C. Capitalize proper nouns and proper adjectives.
A proper noun is the name of a particular person, place, or thing. The opposite of a proper noun is a common noun, which is not capitalized.
PROPER NOUNS COMMON NOUNS
James McCall man
Canada country
Ohio River river
A proper adjective is an adjective formed from a proper noun.
PROPER NOUNS PROPER ADJECTIVES
England English
Europe European
D. Capitalize the names of persons. E. Capitalize geographical names.
CITIES, TOWNSHIPS, COUNTIES, STATES, COUNTRIES, CONTINENTS: Garden City, Addison Township, Shelby County, Indiana, United States of America, North America
ISLANDS, PENINSULAS, STRAITS, BEACHES: Sea Island, Iberian Peninsula, Strait of Gibraltar, Daytona Beach
BODIES OF WATER: Shafer Lake, Lake Erie, Mississippi River, Atlantic Ocean, Baltic Sea, Hudson Bay
MOUNTAINS: Rocky Mountains, Pike’s Peak
STREETS: Miller Street, Washington Avenue, Forty-second Street, Haven Drive
PARKS, FORESTS, CANYONS, DAMS: Yosemite National Park, Hoosier National
Park, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam
RECOGNIZED SECTIONS OF THE COUNTRY OR WORLD: the South, the
Northwest, the Far East
F. Do not capitalize east, west, north, and south when they indicate directions. Do capitalize them when they refer to recognized sections of the country or world.
Turn east at the next corner.
You will see the store on the north side of the street. We were going south when the car hit us.
To understand America, visit the Middle West. We are going South for the winter.
G. Do not capitalize a word used with a proper noun or adjective unless the word is part of a name, in which case it is a proper noun.
The great city of Chicago, New York City; the valley of the Hudson, the Hudson
Valley; Chinese restaurant, Sing Lee’s Chinese Restaurant
Note: Do not capitalize such words as hotel, theater, church, high school, college, and
university unless they are part of a proper name.
Signature Inn Hotel a hotel in Indianapolis Purdue University a university in Indiana Shelbyville High School a high school textbook United States Post Office the local post office
BUILDINGS, BUSINESS FIRMS, AND BRAND NAMES OF BUSINESS PRODUCTS: Chrysler Building, American Airlines, Nike, Cheerios, Coca-Cola
CALENDAR ITEMS: Sunday, November, Christmas Eve, Labor Day
GOVERNMENT BODIES: Congress, House of Representatives, Securities and
Exchange Commission, Treasury Department
H. Do not capitalize the names of school subjects, except the languages. Course names followed by a number are usually capitalized.
English, French, Spanish, Latin, German, Italian, Japanese algebra, art, chemistry, biology
Algebra II, History III, Art 102, Biology I
Summary Style Sheet
Mexico City a city in Mexico
Twenty-ninth Street across the street
the South a mile south
Ford Motor Company an automobile company
the Freshman Class freshman classes
Principal Zobel Mr. Zobel, the principal
Don’t tell Mother Don’t tell my mother
Uncle Bill my uncle
