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

2. When do I capitalize words such as MOTHER, FATHER, AUNT, UNCLE, etc.?
Cap. 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
Uncle Steve
“I’m coming, Mom.”
“Dad, will you help me?”

3. When shouldn’t I capitalize words such as MOTHER, FATHER, AUNT, UNCLE, etc.?
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.
I love my mother.
The father ran after his son.

4. Rules for RELIGIOUS WORDS
Cap. Words that name religions, sacred beings, or religious scriptures. Also, cap. Adjectives formed from those names:
Allah
Jehovah
the Torah
Islam
Christian
Buddhism

5. Rules for RACES/ ETHNIC GROUPS
Cap. The names of races, ethnic groups, languages, and nationalities. Also cap. Adjectives formed from such names:
Hispanic
Colombian coffee
African American
French food

6. Rules for ORGANIZATIONS, BUILDINGS, and STRUCTURES
Cap. all important words in the names of organizations, institutions, buildings, and structures:
the Republican Party
the American Red Cross
Grand Central Station
the Taj Mahal
the Eiffel Tower
the Great Wall of China

7. Rules for HISTORICAL EVENTS, DOCUMENTS, and PERIODS OF TIME
Cap. 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

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

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

10. Rules for DIRECT QUOTATIONS
Cap. the first word of a direct quotation:
Mr. Burns yelled, “Homer, you’re fired!”

11. Rule for INTERRUPTED QUOTATIONS
Cap. 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.”

12. The 10 Rules for GEOGRAPHIC NAMES
1. Cap. the names of cities and towns:
Philadelphia
Buckingham
Doylestown
2. Cap. the names of counties and townships:
Bucks County
Montgomery Township

13. The 10 Rules for GEOGRAPHIC NAMES
3. Cap. the names of states:
Pennsylvania
Texas
Maryland
4. Cap. the names of continents:
Asia
North America
5. Cap. the names of islands:
Philippine Islands
Staten Island

14. The 10 Rules for GEOGRAPHIC NAMES
6. Cap. the names of bodies of water:
Lake Erie
Delaware River
Gulf of Mexico
7. Cap. the names of sections of the country:
the East Coast
the Southwest
*NOTE: DO NOT cap. north, south, east, and west when merely indicating direction:
traveling east
the north shore

15. The 10 Rules for GEOGRAPHIC NAMES
8. Cap. the names of mountains:
Black Hills
Appalachian Mountains
the Rockies 
9. Cap. the names of streets:
Elm Street
Roosevelt Boulevard
\West Third Street

16. The 10 Rules for GEOGRAPHIC NAMES
10. Cap. the names of parks:
Yellowstone National Park
Pennypack Park
Central Park
*NOTE: The COMPLETE NAME is capitalized. Words like Street, Mountain, and River are cap. because they are part of the proper name.
If these words are NOT part of a proper name, they are not capitalized!
Compare:
attending high school vs CB East High School
in the street vs. Main Street

17. Rules for SCHOOL SUBJECTS
DO NOT cap. the names of school subjects, except course names followed by a number:
Algebra I
World Cultures II
social studies
math
*NOTE: Remember that the names of languages are always capitalized:
English
Spanish
Hebrew

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

19. ABBREVIATIONS Cap. 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.

20. Rules for TITLES
Cap. 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”

21. Rules for TITLES
*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