Moi vao xem

CAPITALIZE THIS!
. . . a guide
to the proper care and feeding
of capital letters
Capitalize the first word of every sentence — unless that sentence is in parentheses incorporated within another sentence.
Capitalize the personal pronoun I.
Glacial till or debris (some geologists call this material “garbage”) is often deposited in formations called morains.
Capitalize the names of family relations when they are used as substitutes for names:
I went to visit my Uncle Ted and Aunt Margaret.
but . . . .
I went with my mom and dad to visit my aunt and uncle.
Grandma and Grandpa live with Dad and Mom now.
Notice the role of the modifying pronoun here.
In titles, capitalize the first, last, and all important words. Usually, we don’t capitalize articles, prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions.
In the Lake of the Woods
War and Peace
I Know This Much Is True
Capitalize names of specific persons, places, and geographical locations.
Don’t capitalize directions.
My brother Charlie, who used to live in the Middle East and write books about the Old West, now lives in Hartford, Connecticut.
and proper nouns . . . .
They moved up north, to the southern shore of Lake Erie.
but
Capitalize names of days of the week, months, and holidays.
Don’t capitalize the names of seasons.
Valentines Day, which is always on February 14, falls on Tuesday this year.
more on proper nouns . . . .
Next fall, before the winter storms begin, we’re heading south.
but
Capitalize the names of historical events.
Capitalize the names of religions and religious terms.
The Battle of the Bulge was an important event in World War II.
still more on proper nouns . . . .
God, Christ, Allah, Buddha, Christianity, Christians, Judaism, Jews, Islam, Muslims
and
The Reformation took place in the sixteenth century.
Capitalize the names of nations, nationalities, languages, and words based on such words.
We usually don’t capitalize “white” and “black.”
Somalia, Swedish, English muffin, Irish stew, Japanese maple, Jew’s harp, French horn
still more on proper nouns . . . .
There are very few blacks in this predominantly white community.
but
Capitalize the names of academic courses when they’re used as titles.
Brand names . . . .
He took Carpentry 101, but he did much better in his economics and English literature courses.
even more on proper nouns . . . .
Ford, Kleenex, Levi’s (not jeans), xerox on a Xerox copier, Advil (but aspirin)
and
Capitalize titles when they precede names.
. . . usually not after a name . . . .
Dean Arrington introduced President Carter to Secretary Bogglesworth.
The titles of people and offices . . . .
Joe Chuckles, who was chairman of the board of directors in 1995, has since retired.
but
You can capitalize the names of political entities in in-house publications to avoid confusion.
You would not capitalize those names in a newspaper report, say.
The County and City have agreed to reimburse the federal government for sewer expenses.
The titles of people and offices (2)
At the last council meeting, the county agreed to reimburse the federal government.
but
Consult a good dictionary!
. . . like the online Merriam-Webster’s:
The best advice on capitalization:
This PowerPoint presentation was created by
Charles Darling, PhD
Professor of English and Webmaster
Capital Community College
Hartford, Connecticut
copyright November 1999