Capitalization of Titles

Titles require special capitalization. In titles, we capitalize the following:

  1. The first and last words of a title
  2. All verbs (action or being words)
  3. All other words in the title except certain short words
  4. A preposition with five or more letters (such as outside, underneath, between, etc.)

Notice the examples below.

Heidi
The Outsiders
Animal Farm
The Secret Garden
When We Were Very Young
The Aeneid
The Emperor's New Clothes
The Waste Land
David Copperfield
"The Tables Turned"
"When I Have Fears"

Unless located first or last in the title, words like a, an, and, the, but, or, for, nor, and prepositions with four letters or fewer do not need a capital letter. Here are some examples of proper capitalization of titles:

Where the Red Fern Grows
"The Tortoise and the Hare"
Sound of Music
The Door in the Wall
The Call of the Wild
"I Have a Dream"
Romeo and Juliet
The Wind in the Willows
Alice in Wonderland
The Fall of the House of Usher
Antony and Cleopatra
"America the Beautiful"
Life on the Mississippi
My Utmost for his Highest
"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"
"A Matter of Principle"

Examples

Write the proper capitalization of titles.

  1. old yeller
  2. the courage of sarah noble
  3. "the giant shoes"
  4. "down in the valley"
  5. oliver twist
  6. little house on the prairie
  7. king lear
  8. the two gentlemen of verona
  9. america is worth saving
  10. "on being brought from africa to america"

Solutions

We show the correct capitalization of titles: 

  1. Old Yeller. We capitalize the first and last words in a book title.
  2. The Courage of Sarah Noble is also a book. The little word of is not capitalized. The first and last words as well as the important words require a capital letter.
  3. "The Giant Shoes" is a story title. We capitalize the first and last words and all important words.
  4. "Down in the Valley" is a song title. We do not capitalize the little words in and the because they are not first or last words in the title.
  5. Oliver Twist. We capitalize the first and last words in a book title.
  6. Little House on the Prairie is also a book. The little words on and the are not capitalized. The first and last words as well as the important words require a capital letter.
  7. King Lear. We capitalize the first and last words in a book title.
  8. The Two Gentlemen of Verona is also a long play. The preposition of is not capitalized. The first and last words as well as the important words require a capital letter.
  9. America Is Worth Saving (We capitalize first and last words in this title plus all verbs and important words.
  10. "On Being Brought from Africa to America" (In this title, we capitalize the first and last words, all verbs and other words except for the short prepositions from and to.)