CAPITALIZATION

CAPITALIZATION Distinguishing the specific from the non-specific Why Use Capital Letters have you ever wondered what it would be like to not have to worry about capitalizing a word? just think, no rules to remember or different letter formations to learn. would it be better if everything was the same with no degree of differences, or would it be too weird? i don’t know about you, but i think i’m important, so i want my name to show that it’s important. I guess if I want my name to be distinguished from the oh-hum, others will see a need for distinguishing important, proper nouns or instances also; therefore, we need some rules! Your Name When you learned to write, the first word you probably wrote was your name. You are a person like no other, and that, my dears, make you special. Any part of your name, therefore, needs to be capitalized. • First letter of first name Hillary • First letter of middle name Maude • First letter of last name James • Initials R. Dallas Gibson • Abbreviations of academic degrees, including Jr. (junior) and Sr. (senior) John Smith, M.D.; Adnee Bradford, Ph.D.; Lawrence Hinkley, Sr. • The pronoun I (after all, it IS referring to you!) The teacher is I. • A title or an abbreviation of a title when it comes BEFORE a name or when it’s being used instead of the name O Captain, my Captain; Dr. Patricia Ubaniebere • Words that show family relationships when used as titles or substitutions for a person’s name I think I will call Mom. When NOT to Capitalize Okay, you guessed it –exceptions! There are, unfortunately, times when you don’t capitalize titles or family relationships. • Do not capitalize a title that follows a person’s name or is used as a common noun. When was Washington appointed as general? • Do not capitalize words showing family relationships when they follow a possessive noun or pronoun. My mom lives in South Carolina. Jeffrey’s sister, my cousin, lives in New York. Jennifer’s aunt Sis lives in Mississippi. (I know that one looks weird, but it follows a possessive.) Nouns of Direct Address Obviously if you’re speaking to someone, you are addressing him or her directly. Sometimes you may not know the name, but you may know the position, title, or occupation. Since the title, position, or occupation is taking the place of the name, capitalize it. Excuse me, Waiter, but there’s a fly in my soup. Oh, Miss, you dropped your scarf. It hurts all over, Doc. Positions of High Office When you replace George Bush (or whoever is president) with his title, you capitalize president. Same goes for the vice-president. This summer the President (that’s G.B.) flew to Camp David. I don’t think the Vice-President (that’s D.C.) accompanied him. Remember, though, if the title comes AFTER the name, it’s not capitalized! God- the Supreme Being There’s only ONE God, the maker of the universe, and any reference to Him is to be capitalized, whether you believe in Him or not. All other gods (Greek, Hindu, etc) are not capitalized, but their names are. The Greek god Zeus lived on Mt. Olympus. The First Word in a Sentence This rule is easy. Since you learned to write, you have used this rule. The class learned something new today. They were rather excited about it! First Word in a Direct Quote As you know, a direct quote is a speaker’s exact words. Think of a direct quote as a sentence within a sentence, and since it IS a new sentence, the first letter of the quote is also capitalized. Mrs. Chapman asked, “Isn’t this exciting?” The students replied, “Yes!” Sometimes the direct quote is interrupted by what I call the “tag” (who’s speaking). In these cases, do not begin the second part of the sentence with a capital letter. “We think,” said the class, “that this is easy.” Notice that the first letter in that is not capitalized. “We think that this is easy,” said the class. Did you capitalize the first letter in that in this sentence? Of course not, so don’t do in with an interrupted quote! However, sometimes the second part of a quote is a completely different sentence. Do you capitalize the first letter in sentences? YES! Well, guess what? You do it with quotes, too! “Power Points are an excellent teaching tool,” said Mrs. Chapman. “They are also neater than my handwriting!” Notice the period after the tag. That lets you know that a brand new sentence is forthcoming. Letters Capitalize the first word in the salutation (greeting/opening) and the title and name of person addressed. Dear Mrs. Strickland, Capitalize the first word ONLY in the closing of a letter. Yours truly, Respectfully, Titles Capitalize the first and last words and all important words in titles. Unimportant words include articles, conjunctions, and prepositions FEWER than five letters. “The Gift of the Magi” The Last Supper Diary of a Mad Black Woman All About Eve Lines of Poetry Until you become a professional poet, the first word of every line of poetry begins with a capital letter. Whose woods these are I think I know His house is in the village, though He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. School Subjects The ONLY school subjects you capitalize are LANGUAGES- English, Latin, French, etc. Other subjects are NOT capitalized. I know your teacher says they’re important (and they are) but DON’T capitalize them UNLESS a number follows it! • Algebra I • Biology II • Spanish I Proper Nouns This one is tricky because it encompasses A LOT! Simply put, proper nouns are SPECIFIC names of people, places, and things. Proper Nouns Chris Flint River Woodbury Milky Way Common Nouns boy river town galaxy Proper Adjectives Proper adjectives are formed from proper nouns, and since we capitalize proper nouns, it stands to reason that we capitalize proper adjectives. Proper Noun Proper Adjective America American Georgia Georgian Europe European Victoria Victorian era Geographical Names Specific places• Continents- North America, Europe • Countries-United States, Brazil • Cities/towns-Woodbury, Atlanta • States-Georgia, Alabama • Islands- Bora Bora, Bali • Bodies of Water- Gulf of Mexico, Hudson Bay • Streets/Highways Highway 85, First Street • Parks and Forests-FDR State Park, Redwood Forest • Mountains-Great Smokey Mountains, the Alps • SECTIONS of the country- the South, the West Watch Out! Make a note – If a street number is hyphenated, the second part of the number is NOT capitalized. I made a wrong turn at Forty-second Street. Directions are not capitalized nor are adjectives derived from directions. I drive east every morning. The easterly winds are brisk. Planets This one is so weird it deserves a slide all by itself. Normally, you capitalize the names of planets, stars, and other heavenly bodies, but you DON’T capitalize earth UNLESS it is listed with other planets. The earth is our home planet, and the easiest way to remember is that since we don’t capitalize home, we don’t capitalize earth. Don’t capitalize sun or moon, too. Groups, Organizations, and Religions Organizations – Boy Scouts of America Teams – Pittsburg Steelers Businesses – Three Trees Ranch Institutions – Wake Forest University Nationalities/Race/People – Hispanic (When referring to Black and White as a race, capitalize it. It’s just easier to remember.) Religions and Followers/Holy Days/Sacred Writings/the One deity –Christianity and Christians/ Christmas or Rosh Hashana, Bible, Koran, God, Allah Objects, Events, Structures, Awards • Brand Name but NOT the product –Dove soap • Historical Events, Periods, Special Events/Holidays, and Calendar Items- Renaissance, Age of Reason, Thanksgiving, Monday, September • Ships, Trains, Airplanes, Spacecrafts- Titanic, the Iron Horse, the Spruce Goose, Apollo 13 • Names of Buildings and Other Structures- Statue of Liberty, the White House • Monuments and Awards – Lincoln Memorial, the Grammy Awards, Purple Heart Seasons This is another tricky one. We THINK the seasons are specific: spring, summer, fall, winter, but it’s been decided by the grammar powers that be that seasons are NOT to be capitalize UNLESS they are part of a name (the Fall Festival), an actual name (This is my friend Summer), or if the season is being personified (This morning Spring danced in with her dress of green). Do You Have It? Whew! It can be a bit overpowering, but if you forget, look for specifics. Specific names, places, things need to stand apart from the everyday. Do your part and capitalize!