Capitalization Rules (Paraphrased)
Start of Sentences:
Always capitalize the first word in any sentence.
Example: Many books explore the topic of ecology.
Titles of Works:
Capitalize every important word in the titles of books, movies, plays, magazines, newspapers, and songs.
Example: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Detroit Free Press
Exceptions in Titles:
Do not capitalize short words in titles like a, an, the, and short conjunctions or prepositions like and, but, or, for, in, from, and to, unless they are the first word in the title.
Examples: Your Child from Birth to Age Three, I Have a Dream
Proper Nouns:
Always capitalize names of specific people, companies, places, holidays, and geographical features.
Example: The National Hockey League is holding its championship games in Metropolitan Stadium near Lake Erie.
Titles Before Names:
Capitalize titles like Mayor, Principal, Aunt, and Governor only when they come before someone’s name. If they come after the name or stand alone, don’t capitalize them—unless they refer to a high-ranking official.
Example: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Queen Elizabeth.
Example: The president met with top business leaders.
Seasons:
Do not capitalize the names of seasons (spring, summer, fall, winter) unless they are part of a title or proper name.
Example: We traveled in the fall. / Spring Gala Event
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QUESTIONS
Instructions:
For each of the following sentences, correct any capitalization mistakes. Use capital letters only when necessary and remove any that are used incorrectly. The number of capitalization errors is indicated in parentheses.
- There are two capitalization errors in the sentence: “The nurses’ association is meeting in New York City.”
- Identify and correct the three capitalization mistakes in the sentence: “The department of justice has an office in the Capitol building.”
- The following sentence contains two capitalization errors: “The Mayor spoke at the Labor Day Parade.”
- There are two errors in capitalization in this sentence: “The City of Monterey, California, is located on the Pacific ocean.”
ANSWERS
1.
Original: “The nurses’ association is meeting in New York City.”
Corrected: The Nurses’ Association is meeting in New York City.
Explanation:
- “Nurses’ Association” is the name of a specific organization, so both words should be capitalized.
- “New York City” is already correctly capitalized as a proper noun.
2.
Original: “The department of justice has an office in the Capitol building.”
Corrected: The Department of Justice has an office in the Capitol Building.
Explanation:
- “Department of Justice” is a proper noun referring to a specific government agency, so each word should be capitalized.
- “Capitol Building” refers to a specific building in Washington, D.C., and should also be capitalized.
3.
Original: “The Mayor spoke at the Labor Day Parade.”
Corrected: The mayor spoke at the Labor Day parade.
Explanation:
- “Mayor” should not be capitalized unless it precedes a name (e.g., Mayor Johnson).
- “Labor Day” is a proper noun and stays capitalized, but “parade” is not part of a formal title and should be lowercase.
4.
Original: “The City of Monterey, California, is located on the Pacific ocean.”
Corrected: The city of Monterey, California, is located on the Pacific Ocean.
Explanation:
- “City” should not be capitalized unless it’s part of an official name like Oklahoma City.
- “Pacific Ocean” is a proper noun and both words must be capitalized.