Capitalization Rules

Capitalization means using a big, or uppercase, letter at the start of a word. There are rules that tell you when to capitalize. You capitalize the first word of a sentence, names of people and places, and other special words. Following capitalization rules makes your writing look neat and correct.

When to Capitalize

Always capitalize the first word of a sentence. Capitalize proper nouns, which are names of specific people, places, and things. Capitalize days of the week and months of the year. Capitalize the word I. Capitalize titles of books, movies, and songs.

When Not to Capitalize

Do not capitalize common nouns like dog, city, or school unless they start a sentence. Do not capitalize the seasons like summer or winter. Do not capitalize small words in titles like a, an, the, and, or of unless they are the first word. Knowing when not to capitalize is just as important as knowing when to do it.

Fun Facts

• The terms uppercase and lowercase come from the old days of printing, when big letters were kept in the upper case and small letters in the lower case.
• In German, all nouns are capitalized, not just proper nouns.
• Some languages, like Arabic and Chinese, do not have capital letters at all.

Did You Know?

The shift key on your keyboard was invented specifically to let typewriter users switch between lowercase and uppercase letters.