Rules for English Language Capitalization

When you speak in English, one way to make some words get more attention than other words is to change the way you say them:

  • Speeding up or slowing down
  • Pausing
  • Increasing or decreasing volume
  • Emphasizing one syllable or word more than another

Communicating by writing in English is much different. There is no volume or speed control! To make sure a reader understands what you mean when you write, it helps to understand the correct use of capitalization.

Capitalization

All capitalized words in English have a more specific meaning than those words spelled with smaller, lower-case letters. When words are capitalized, they are noticeable and seem “louder”. If you capitalize all the letters, it may even seem like shouting:

I AM REALLY, REALLY UPSET RIGHT NOW!

English Capitalization Rules

Capitalize the Pronoun “I”

“I” is the only pronoun (a substitute word for proper nouns) that is capitalized all the time. It doesn’t matter where “I” falls in a sentence, it is always capitalized.

“I rode the bus all the way to town before I realized I forget my keys.”

Capitalize the First Letter of a Sentence

Each sentence is written as a complete thought. Punctuation marks at the end of sentences let a reader know a sentence is over. Capitalizing the first letter of the first word in a sentence is a tall, clear signal that a new sentence or thought is about to begin.

“he had a cup of coffee and spilled it all over his lap. it was a big mess.”

“He had a cup of coffee and spilled it all over his lap. It was a big mess.”

Capitalize Proper Nouns

Imagine you have a dog name Sam. The word “dog” is a plain old noun. Any person, place, thing or idea can be a noun; however, when you talk about one very specific name, that noun becomes more important–a proper noun. “Sam” is capitalized because he is not just any dog. “Sam” is a specific dog with a special name.

Capitalize These:

  • John Q. Goofenheimer – every first letter in a first, middle and last name
  • President Barak Obama – titles when used as part of a name like “Mr.”, “Dr.” and “Senator”
  • Himalayan Mountains – a specific mountain range
  • Mediterranean Sea – a famous body of water
  • West Main Street, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – addresses including streets, cities, states and countries
  • The Midwest, the South, the Northeast – directions used as proper names
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology – schools
  • The New York Times – names of books, newspapers, movies, artwork, plays, songs, articles and magazines
  • Microsoft – company names
  • The Leaning Tower of Pisa – buildings
  • Red Cross – organizations
  • Wednesday – weekdays
  • June – months of the year
  • Labor Day – holidays
  • The World Series – specific events
  • India, Indian, Hindi – countries, nationalities and languages
  • S.O.S. – acronyms (Save Our Ship)
  • Dear Mr. Employer – salutations in letters
  • Sincerely – closings in letters
  • Coke – brand names
  • Middle Ages – periods of time