Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules

03.01.2023 Grammar Time to read: 4min

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Capitalization-Rules-Definition

Capitalization, a fundamental language rule, plays a pivotal role in presenting written content with clarity and correctness. Just as punctuation and grammar give structure and meaning to our sentences, adhering to capitalization rules ensures that our writing is both coherent and standardized. This article focuses on easy ways to memorize English capitalization rules.

Capitalization rules in a nutshell

Capitalization rules are rules that tell you where to use capital letters in writing.

Definition: Capitalization rules

Capitalization rules refer to a set of guidelines that determine when to capitalize letters in a text. You capitalize a word by writing its first letter in uppercase and the remaining letters in lowercase. These capitalization rules make sure that writers maintain clarity, consistency, and proper grammar in the English language.

Mnemonic

One way to memorize capitalization rules, is using the acronym MINT. It stands for:

  • Months, days, and holidays
  • I,” the pronoun
  • Names of people, places, and specific things
  • Titles and headings of books, movies, etc.
  • Start of a sentence
Capitalization rules-mnemonic

In the section below, we’ll get into each rule and show helpful examples.

Rules

The capitalization rules are as follows:

Months, days, and holidays

Months, days, and holidays are considered proper nouns, which refer to specific times or event. Unlike seasons, they’re always capitalized to show that they are unique and not just general references of time.

Examples

✅My birthday is in March.

✅We’re meeting on Monday.

Christmas is my favorite holiday.

Examples

❌I can’t wait for Spring to come.

❌We’ll be celebrating new year’s eve together.

❌I’ll call you next friday.

The pronoun “I”

The pronoun “I” is the only pronoun in the English language that is always capitalized, no matter where it appears in a sentence.

Examples

I love reading crime novels.

✅My friend and I are going to the concert.

✅She said that I should call you.

Examples

❌My friend and i are coming over later.

i wouldn’t miss it for the world.

i still need to finish my essay.

Names of people, places, and specific things

Proper nouns are nouns that are always capitalized. Proper nouns include:

  • People’s names
  • Job titles, positions, and honorifics
  • Geographic locations
  • Nationalities, languages, and ethnic groups
  • Companies and brands
  • Government and institutions
  • Historical events, documents, and eras
  • Religions, deities, and religious texts

Note: You don’t need to capitalize family titles (Mom, Dad, Grandma, etc.) when they’re used with a possessive adjective or an article, e.g., “my mom,” “a grandma.”

Examples

✅Have you met Manon yet, Mom?

✅We traveled to Italy last summer and saw Dr. Umar.

✅They visited the Statue of Liberty.

Examples

❌We visited paris last summer.

Albert einstein was a brilliant scientist.

❌They live in New york city.

Titles of creative works

According to capitalization rules, titles of creative works should capitalize important words. That means short prepositions and conjunctions should be lowercase unless they come at the beginning or end of a title.

Examples

✅I just finished reading The Hunger Games.

✅We watched Back to the Future last night.

✅I loved reading Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

Examples

❌She is studying pride and prejudice for her English class.

❌We watched the dark knight yesterday.

❌I enjoyed the maze runner series.

Start of a sentence

The first word of a sentence is always capitalized to indicate the beginning of a new thought.

Examples

They opened the window to let in some air.

Today is going to be a great day!

He enjoys playing volleyball.

Examples

the dog ran across the yard.

he always plays table tennis.

she couldn’t believe it.

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Example

Below, you can find an example text in lowercase. The text in the second tab, however, follows capitalization rules. Can you get everything right?

last week, mom and i went to new york city to see a broadway show. on the way, we stopped by central park and had lunch at a small café. after the show, we walked down fifth avenue and did some shopping. it was a memorable trip, and we can’t wait to visit nyc again.

Last week, Mom and I went to New York City to see a Broadway show. On the way, we stopped by Central Park and had lunch at a small café. After the show, we walked down Fifth Avenue and did some shopping. It was a memorable trip, and we can’t wait to visit NYC again.

Note: NYC is capitalized as well since it’s an acronym for “New York City.”

FAQs

Capitalization rules include:

  • Always capitalize the first word of a sentence
  • Capitalize proper nouns like names, titles, places, and organizations
  • Capitalize days, months, and holidays
  • Always capitalize the pronoun “I”
  • Capitalize titles of works → the first or last words and principal words
  • Capitalize acronym and initials

You should avoid capitalizing:

  • Common nouns (dog, book, city)
  • Articles, conjunctions & short prepositions (unless first or last in a title)
  • Seasons (fall, spring, summer)
  • Titles used generally (the manager, a grandma, a professor)
  • Directions (if not part of a place name) → “Drive north for ten miles.”

The mnemonic for capitalization rules is “MINTS.” It stands for:

  • Months, days, and holidays
  • I,” the pronoun
  • Names of people, places, and specific things
  • Titles of books, movies, etc.
  • Start of a sentence
From

Melissa Gertschnig

 
About the author

Melissa Gertschnig works as a Content Manager for the English market at BachelorPrint. A love for languages and other cultures has led her to become a foreign language correspondence clerk, with a primary focus on English and Spanish. This gained her a high proficiency English level in listening, writing, and reading. During her training, Melissa had been awarded a Level 2 Pearson LCCI Certificate for Business English. While working full-time, she earned her certificate in Online Marketing, which ultimately led her to BachelorPrint, where she delivers professionally written and educational content for students and curious individuals all around the world.

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Cite This Article

Bibliography

Gertschnig, M. (2023, March 01). Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules. BachelorPrint. https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/ (retrieved 07.30.2025)

In-text citation

Parenthetical
(Gertschnig , 2023)
Narrative
Gertschnig (2023)

Bibliography

Gertschnig, Melissa. 2023. "Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules." BachelorPrint, Retrieved July 30, 2025. https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/.

In-text citation

Parenthetical
(Gertschnig 2023)

Bibliography

Melissa Gertschnig, "Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules," BachelorPrint, March 01, 2023, https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/ (retrieved July 30, 2025).

Footnotes

Short note
Gertschnig, "Shortened title."

Bibliography

Gertschnig, Melissa: Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules, in: BachelorPrint, 03.01.2023, [online] https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/ (retrieved 07.30.2025).

Footnotes

Full note
Gertschnig, Melissa: Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules, in: BachelorPrint, 03.01.2023, [online] https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/ (retrieved 07.30.2025).
Direct quote
Gertschnig, 2023.
Indirect quote
Gertschnig, 2023.

Bibliography

Gertschnig, Melissa (2023): Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules, in: BachelorPrint, [online] https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/ (retrieved 07.30.2025).

In-text citation

Direct quote
(Gertschnig, 2023)
Indirect quote
(Gertschnig, 2023)
Narrative
Gertschnig (2023)

Bibliography

Gertschnig, Melissa. "Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules." BachelorPrint, 03.01.2023, https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/ (retrieved 07.30.2025).

In-text citation

Parenthetical
(Gertschnig)
Narrative
Gertschnig

Bibliography

Number. Gertschnig M. Capitalization Rules – Mnemonic, Examples & Rules [Internet]. BachelorPrint. 2023 [cited 07.30.2025]. Available from: https://www.bachelorprint.com/language-rules/capitalization-rules/


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