Rules and Examples

 Capitalize beginnings of: ◦ Sentences ◦ Quotations ◦ Salutations or Closings  Titles of works ◦ First and last words ◦ Other words (except prepositions and articles)  Bullet list items  Months and Days  Titles of people when accompanied by a name  Names of: ◦ People ◦ Buildings ◦ Groups ◦ Ships ◦ Companies ◦ Courses ◦ Places  Words that stand in for names  Acronyms

 Sentences (all 3 types) ◦ Cats eat mice. ◦ Do cats eat mice? ◦ Your cat ate my mouse!  Quotations ◦ Tim said sadly, “My mouse has been eaten.” ◦ According to one expert, “Cats do not really eat mice” (Gates 23).  Salutations or Closings ◦ Dear Tim, ◦ Yours apologetically,

 Books  Movies  Albums  Periodicals  Television Shows  Articles  Episodes  Songs  Poems  Stories  Capitalize the first and last words  Capitalize all other important words  DO NOT capitalize: ◦ articles (a, an, the) ◦ prepositions (in, out, on, over, under, to, at, with, for, etc.) ◦ Conjunctions (and, also, but, so, or, etc.)  Of Mice and Men  “We Are the Champions”  “The Road Less Traveled”

 People  Places ◦ Cities, Countries, Planets, Counties, States, Regions  Buildings  Events  Groups  Ships  Companies  Products  Courses  Holidays Tom Thompson lives on Fifth Avenue, in New York, in the Thomas Mann Building, where the leader of Journalist Jokester Union first set up a strike against the Village Voice just after one World War II Thanksgiving for not having a Pepsi machine in their lobby.

The first word in each bullet is capitalized. The main complaints of house cats:  Too much noise  Not enough food  Dogs chasing us around  Children poking and pulling us  Insolent humans who fail to do our bidding

 From January until June, I put up with the antics of the surly kitten.  On Monday morning, I vowed to give the cat away on Friday if things did not improve.

 On Wednesday, President Obama went to France.  On Wednesday, the president went to France. AND  The petition was signed by Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State.  The petition was signed by the secretary of state.

Whenever you can replace a word with a formal name (a proper noun), you should capitalize it, especially in cases of direct address.  Aren’t you ready yet, Mom?  Your mom isn’t ready yet!  Last week Grandpa took me to the zoo.  Last week my grandpa took me to the zoo.  Can you hear me, Sir?  The doctor said I am as healthy as a house cat.

Acronyms are initials taken from the first letter in a series of words.  Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)  Crime Scene Investigation (CSI)  National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)  People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

 Seasons ◦ You can visit during winter, spring, summer, or fall.  Generalized/shortened names (i.e. congress, the bureau) ◦ The bureau chased him down because he stole records from the doctor.  Job titles without names ◦ The chairman was fired last week.  The second part of a split quote ◦ “You will see,” she said, “that not everything is as it seems.”

 First word after a colon or semicolon ◦ The cat ate: mice, frogs, fish, and a Thanksgiving turkey. ◦ The sun finally came out; everyone headed out of doors.  Compass points ◦ Travel north for 5 miles then head east.  Earth if it means “dirt” ◦ The four elements are earth, air, fire, and water.  Class names that are not formal course names ◦ I take math and French on Fridays.

  -shl/par_numberless_quiz.pl/caps_quiz.htm -shl/par_numberless_quiz.pl/caps_quiz.htm  uiz.htm uiz.htm Remember you can also conduct an Internet search for Capitalization Practice for more review