Capitalization Rules: When to Use Capital Letters
Writing Toolkit · Mechanics
English capitalization is a small system with strict rules. Master the ten cases below and your writing will look careful before a single idea is judged.
Always Capitalize
Capital letters mark things that are unique or named. If it has a name, it wears a capital.
- The first word of every sentence.
- The pronoun “I” — always, everywhere.
- Names of people: Emma Wilson, Dr. Parker, Mr. Johnson.
- Places with names: Chicago, Lake Michigan, 5th Avenue, the Mississippi River.
- Countries, nationalities, and languages: Canada, Canadian, English, Spanish.
- Days, months, and holidays: Monday, June, Thanksgiving. (NOT seasons: spring, summer.)
- Organizations and brands: the University of Texas, Google, the Red Cross.
- Titles of books, films, and articles: first word + all main words — “The Old Man and the Sea”.
Never Capitalize
Just as important: ordinary categories stay small, even when they feel important.
- School subjects (unless languages): math, history, biology — but English, French.
- Seasons: spring, summer, fall, winter.
- General jobs and roles: a teacher, the president — BUT titles before names: President Lincoln, Dr. Parker.
- Directions as directions: go north, the south of France — BUT named regions: the South, the Midwest.
- Common nouns of every kind: the city, the river, my mother (unless used as her name: “Hi, Mother!”).
The Tricky Middles
A few cases depend on role, not on the word. “The university” is small; “the University of Texas” is a name. “Aunt” is small in “my aunt”, capital in “Aunt Rosa” because it has become part of her name. When a title stands before a name, it joins the name and takes the capital; when it stands alone as a description, it does not.
- “Professor Alvarez teaches biology.” vs “The professor teaches biology.”
- “I spoke with Uncle David.” vs “I spoke with my uncle.”
- Email closings: only the first word is capital — “Best regards,” not “Best Regards,” (a common over-capitalization).
- After a colon, the next word stays small unless it starts a full formal sentence or a proper noun.
Watch Out: Common Errors
✗ I Study Math And History At The University.
✓ I study math and history at the university.
✗ She speaks english and spanish very well.
✓ She speaks English and Spanish very well.
✗ My Aunt lives in the south of texas.
✓ My aunt lives in the south of Texas. (But: I visited Aunt Rosa in the South.)
Practice
Related lessons
✍️ Capital Letters and Periods: Sentence Basics✍️ Writing About Me: Personal Information✍️ Formal Emails and Professional Communication📘 Grammar deep-dive← All Toolkit pages · Writing Lab
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