1. Capitalization Rules

2. Rule for the pronoun “I” and the interjection “O”
Always capitalize!

3. Rule for the first word of every sentence?
Always capitalize!

4. Rules for buildings, structures, institutions, and organizations.
Capitalize all important words in the names buildings, structures, institutions, and organizations.
Grand Central Station
the Great Pyramids
the American Red Cross
the Democratic Party

5. Rules for places with borders
(cities, towns, counties, states, countries, continents, etc.)
1. Capitalize the names of cities and towns:
Atlanta and Ider
2. Capitalize the names of counties and townships:
Lee County and Valley
3. Capitalize the names of states:
Alabama and Georgia
4. Capitalize the names of continents:
Asia and North America
5. Capitalize the names of islands:
Hawaii Islands and Daulphin Island

6. Rules for bodies of water
6. Capitalize the names of bodies of water:
Lake Hardin and Gulf of Mexico
7. Cap. the names of sections of the country:
the East Coast
the Southwest
*NOTE: DO NOT capitalize north, south, east, and west when merely indicating direction:
traveling east
the north shore

7. Rules for mountains 8. Capitalize the names of mountains:
Appalachian Mountains and Rocky Mountains

8. Rules for streets (as well as boulevards, parkways, roads, etc..)
9. Capitalize the names of streets:
North University Street and Dean Road
*NOTE: The COMPLETE NAME is capitalized. Words like Street, Mountain, and River are capitalized because they are part of the proper name.

9. Rules for parks 10. Capitalize the names of parks:
Smoky Mountain National Park and Central Park
*NOTE: The COMPLETE NAME is capitalized. Words like Street, Mountain, and River are capitalized because they are part of the proper name.
**NOTE: If these words are NOT part of a proper name, they are not capitalized!
in the street vs. Main Street
to the park vs. Kiesel Park

10. Rules for schools Capitalize the names of schools:
Smiths Station High School and LaFayette High School
**NOTE: If these words are NOT part of a proper name, they are not capitalized!
attending high school vs Valley High School
DO NOT capitalize the names of general school subjects, except course names followed by a number:
Algebra I and World History II
social studies and math
*NOTE: Remember that the names of languages are always capitalized:
English and Spanish

11. When do I capitalize the titles of people’s names?
Capitalize titles and abbreviations for titles that appear before and after people’s names:
Mrs. Barnhart
Dr. McKenna
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

12. When do I capitalize words such as mother, father, aunt, uncle, etc.?
Capitalize words such as mother, father, aunt, uncle, etc. when these words are used as names or when they come just before a name:
Aunt Anna or Uncle Steve
“I’m coming, Mom.” or “Dad, will you help me?”
DO NOT capitalize words that name family members if these words are preceded by a possessive, such as your or my, or by an article such as a or the.
My aunt loves to ski. or She loves your mother.
The father ran after his son.

13. Rules for religious words
Capitalize words that name religions, sacred beings, or religious scriptures. Also, cap. Adjectives formed from those names:
Allah and Jehovah
Bible and Koran
Islam
Christian
Buddhism

14. Rules for RACES/ETHNIC GROUPS
Capitalize the names of races, ethnic groups, languages, and nationalities.
Hispanic
Colombian coffee
African American

15. Rules for Proper Adjectives
Capitalize all adjectives made from a proper nouns.
“English” because it comes from the word England.
“French” fries because it comes from the word France.
“Christians” because it comes from the word Christ.

16. Rules for HISTORICAL EVENTS, DOCUMENTS, and PERIODS OF TIME
Capitalize all important words in the names of historical events, documents, and periods of time:
the Civil War
the 1996 Summer Olympics
the Declaration of Independence
Gettysburg Address
the Magna Carta
the Renaissance
the Ice Age

17. Rules for MONTHS, DAYS, HOLIDAYS, and SEASONS
Capitalization the names of months, days, and holidays, but not the names of seasons:
October
Thursday
Yom Kippur
Labor Day
winter

18. Rules for POETRY Capitalize the first word of each line of poetry:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue…

19. Rules for DIRECT QUOTATIONS
Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation:
Mr. Burns yelled, “Congratulations, you’ve just passed your GED!”

20. Rule for INTERRUPTED QUOTATIONS
Capitalize interrupted quotations only when the second part begins a new sentence:
“Close your books,” said Mrs. Barnhart, “and go to lunch.”
“Remind me tomorrow,” said Sarah. “We have to leave now.”

21. Rules for PARTS OF A LETTER
Capitalize all important/proper words in the GREETING:
Dear Dr. Jones,
Dear Sir or Madam,
In the CLOSING, capitalize only the first word:
Yours truly,
Sincerely yours,

22. Rules for ABBREVIATIONS
Capitalize the abbreviations B.C., A.D., A.M., and P.M.
Homeroom begins at 7:30 A.M.
Pompeii was buried by lava in A.D. 79.

23. Rules for TITLES (part 1)
Capitalize the first word and all important words in titles of:
Books—The Cay
Newspapers—The Philadelphia Inquirer
Plays—The Importance of Being Earnest
T.V. Shows—The Brady Bunch
Magazines—Vanity Fair
Short Stories—“Seventh Grade”
Songs—“With Arms Wide Open”
Poems—“Pied Beauty”

24. Rules for TITLES (part 2)
*NOTE: In the title, DO NOT capitalize articles such as a, an, the; conjunctions such as and, or, but, for; or prepositions such as on, about, near, in, to, under, etc.
DO cap. articles, conjunctions, and prepositions when they come at the beginning of the title:
“And Justice for All”
“Under the Bridge”
The Tin Man