The following rules for capitalizing composition titles are virtually universal. The usual advice is to capitalize only the "important" words. Composition titles: which words should be capitalized in titles of books, plays, films, songs, poems, essays, chapters, etc.? This is a vexing matter, and policies vary. If a trademark starts with a lowercase word or letter ( e.g., eBay, iPhone), many authorities advise capitalizing it to begin a sentence.Įxample: EBay opened strong in trading today. No one would argue with Coca-Cola or Pepsi Cola, but a case could be made for Royal Crown cola. There is Time magazine but also the New York Times Magazine. Domino's Pizza or Domino's pizza? Is it Ivory Soap or Ivory soap, a Hilton Hotel or a Hilton hotel? Most writers don't capitalize common nouns that simply describe the products ( pizza, soap, hotel), but it's not always easy to determine where a brand name ends. In the case of brand names, companies are of little help, because they capitalize any word that applies to their merchandise. Research with reference books and search engines is the best strategy. A thorny aspect of capitalization: where does it stop? When does the Iraq war become the Iraq War? Why is the legendary Hope Diamond not the Hope diamond? Everyone writes New York City, so why does the Associated Press Stylebook recommend New York state? There aren't always easy formulas or logical explanations. Spring, summertime, the winter solstice, the autumnal equinox, daylight saving time Poinsettia, Douglas fir, Jerusalem artichoke, organic celery, Golden Delicious apples Lowercase except for brand names, proper nouns and adjectives, or custom-named recipes: Tabasco sauce, Russian dressing, pepper crusted bluefin tuna, Mandy's Bluefin SurpriseĮpstein-Barr syndrome, tuberculosis, Parkinson's disease In such cases, only the proper noun or adjective is capitalized.Īntelope, black bear, Bengal tiger, yellow-bellied sapsucker, German shepherdĪlways lowercase, even when the name is derived from a proper noun: einsteinium, nobelium, californium Here is a list of categories not capitalized unless an item contains a proper noun or proper adjective (or, sometimes, a trademark). The Olympic Games, the Cannes Film Festival Do not capitalize heaven, hell, the devil, satanic. Note: Capitalize the Bible (but biblical). Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, but policies vary on capitalizing earth, and it is usually not capitalized unless it is being discussed specifically as a planet: We learned that Earth travels through space at 66,700 miles per hour.Įskimo, Navajo, East Indian, Caucasian, African American The Empire State Building, the Eiffel Tower, the TitanicĪndrew "Old Hickory" Jackson Babe Ruth, the Sultan of SwatĪmerican Center for Law and Justice, Norwegian Ministry of the Environment Oxford College, the Juilliard School of Music The Inquisition, the American Revolutionary War, the Great Depression Note: Many authorities do not capitalize federal or state unless it is part of the official title: State Water Resources Control Board, but state water board Federal Communications Commission, but federal regulations. Constitution (but constitutional), the Electoral College, Department of Agriculture.
Days of the week and months of the yearĬongress (but congressional), the U.S.We can speak of a lake in the middle of the country, or we can be more specific and say Lake Michigan, which distinguishes it from every other lake on earth. The main function of capitals is to focus attention on particular elements within any group of people, places, or things. Quixotic (from the hero of the classic novel Don Quixote)ĭraconian (from ancient-Athenian lawgiver Draco) Herculean (from the mythological hero Hercules) With the passage of time, some words originally derived from proper nouns have taken on a life, and authority, of their own and no longer require capitalization. Capitalize proper nouns-and adjectives derived from proper nouns.
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