Upper- and Lower-Case Letters (Written Conventions of English)

UPPER- AND LOWER-CASE LETTERS (Written Conventions of English)

• Upper-case letters = "Capital letters" - A, B, C, D, etc.
• Lower-case letters = "small letters"   -  a, b, c, d, etc.

Capitalize:

• the first word of a sentence: Never sit on a cactus.
• the first word of a quote: He said, "Never sit on a cactus."
• the pronoun I: He sat on a cactus, but I didn't.
• proper nouns: My friend Bill sat on a cactus in Arizona.
• a person's title (sometimes): President Joe Biden, but Joe Biden is the current president of America.
• days, months, historical eras, and holidays (not seasons): Monday, April, the Renaissance, Christmas, but winter
• cardinal directions naming a place: the South, Eastern Europe, but Chicago is east of New York.
• initials and acronyms: J. F. Kennedy, U.S.A. or USA / NATO

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In a title:

• YES: the first word, nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs
• NO: articles, conjunctions, and prepositions

    To Kill a Mockingbird, Gone with the Wind

NOTE: In informal writing, entire words can be capitalized for emphasis: HE didn't sit on a cactus; YOU sat on a cactus.

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