Grammar 5.1 Capitalizing People and Cultures; Capitalizing First Words and Titles
Main Ideas Capitalize people s names and initials Capitalize titles and abbreviations of titles when they are used before names or in direct address Capitalize the personal pronoun I Capitalize the names of religions, religious concepts, nationalities, and important cultural identifiers Capitalize the first word of every sentence Capitalize the first word in a direct quotation Titles have special capitalization rules
Capitalizing Proper Nouns Capitalize all proper nouns, or nouns that name specific people, places, or things. Names of people - each part of a person s name, including initials Mary Lynn Swanson Eric J. Watson D. J. Alworth III Usually, you will capitalize both parts of a last name that has two parts, but there are exceptions. MacDonald O Shaughnessy San Pedro exceptions: d Antogne, de las Casas
Capitalizing Proper Nouns (cont.) Geographical names - any specific location on a map Streets: Warren Street, Carlton Avenue, Interstate 10 Cities: Baltimore, London, Port au Prince, Austin States: Arizona, Texas, Florida, New York Nations: Italy, Canada, Kenya, South Korea Mountains: Mount Everest, Rocky Mountains, Mt. Kilimanjaro Regions: Great Plains, Bible Belt, Appalachian Highlands, Deep South Rivers: Mississippi River, the Nile Lakes: Lake Michigan, Great Salt Lake Seas: Black Sea, Mediterranean, North Sea Oceans: Atlantic, Indian Ocean Names of regions, such as the South and the Northeast, are capitalized because they refer to a specific geographical location. Map directions that do not refer to a specific location are not capitalized. The South has the best fried chicken in the country. Travel south to get to San Antonio.
Capitalizing Proper Nouns (cont.) Capitalize specific events and times - Historical periods: Middle Ages, the Renaissance Historical events: World War II, Boston Tea Party, the Alamo Documents: Bill of Rights, Treaty of Versailles, Magna Carta Days: Wednesday, Saturday Months: December, October Holidays: Thanksgiving, Labor Day Religious days: Christmas, Ramadan, Yom Kippur Special events: Austin City Limits Music Festival, Winter Wonderland Do not capitalize the names of seasons. They are the exception to this rule.
Capitalizing Proper Nouns (cont.) Capitalize specific groups - Clubs: Rotary Club Organizations: National Honor Society Institutions: University of Texas at Austin, Chaparral Star Academy Businesses: Microsoft, Kleenex Government bodies: United States Congress, Texas Supreme Court Political parties: Whigs, Republicans, Democrats, Liberal-Democrats Nationalities: Chinese, German, Nigerian, Dutch, American, Texan Languages: English, Spanish, Korean, Swahili Religions: Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism Religious terms: the Prophet, Our Father, Holy Spirit, Bhagavad Gita
Capitalizing Proper Nouns (cont.) Capitalize special places and items - Monuments: Statue of Liberty, Eiffel Tower, Tower of London Memorials: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Anne Frank House Buildings: Houston Museum of Fine Arts, the Smithsonian Celestial bodies: Earth, Milky Way, Jupiter Awards: Newbery Medal, Nobel Prize Air, sea, and spacecraft: Spirit of St. Louis, Voyager 2, U.S.S. Intrepid
Capitalizing Titles and Abbreviations Capitalize titles and abbreviations that are used before names or in direct address. Mr. Carl Lewis General Colin Powell President Abraham Lincoln Did you save that planet, Doctor? Capitalize abbreviations of some titles when they follow a name. Todd Owens, Jr. Sylvester Fine, Esq. Mary Mueller, D.D.S. When you do not have a title before a name, do not capitalize it. Did you see Lord Fancypants? That was the lord of this land.
Capitalizing Titles and Abbreviations (cont.) Capitalize words indicating family relationships only when they appear before a name or are used as names. Aunt Carla Great-Grandfather Rupert Mom and Dad are going to a movie tonight. Your mother is a sweet lady.
The Pronoun I Always capitalize it. No, really.
Capitalization Practice I Read the sentences. Write each word that needs to be capitalized correctly. 1. The green valley cyclers go on biking trips every weekend. The Green Valley Cyclers go on biking trips every weekend. 2. Is halloween your favorite holiday, or is it spring break? Is Halloween your favorite holiday, or is it Spring Break? 3. The city council meets every wednesday. The City Council meets every Wednesday. 4. You must travel south to reach the old south. You must travel south to reach the Old South. 5. The goldbergs host a seder dinner during passover. The Goldbergs host a Seder dinner during Passover. 6. Pass me the kleenex, grandpa jo. Pass me the Kleenex, Grandpa Jo.
Capitalizing First Words and Titles Capitalize the first word of every sentence. Baseball comes from an English sport caled rounders. In traditional poetry, capitalize the first word of every line. Death, be not proud; Tho some have called thee Might and dreadful. Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation presented as a complete sentence. Mr. Ketcher asked the student, Are you ready to go? In a divided quotation, do not capitalize the first word of the second part unless it starts a new sentence. Don t worry, said Nina, There s always next season.
Capitalizing First Words and Titles (cont.) Titles of works are tricky. Capitalize the word, the last word, and all other important words in a title. Do not capitalize Articles -- a, an, the Coordinating conjunctions -- and, but, or Prepositions of fewer than five letters -- of, to, with Books: The Giver, The Call of the Wild Plays/Musicals: Les Miserables, Hamlet Short Stories: The Tell-Tale Heart, This Time Next Year Poems: The Odyssey, Ode to an Artichoke