6 Types of Words You Shouldn’t Capitalize

Capitalization rules are among the first grammar lessons we learn in school. For example, every word — from “president” and “mom” to “biology” and “spring” — gets capitalized when it starts a sentence. However, the rules are a little more complicated when these words appear in the middle of a sentence. More often than not, they should be lowercase, but because of special exceptions to the rules, writers sometimes get confused and add an erroneous uppercase letter.

On top of that, capitalization can feel oddly emotional. We often capitalize things we respect or that feel important, including academic degrees and family member titles, but the English language doesn’t reward status with capital letters. Here are some of the most commonly overcapitalized words, along with the rules for handling them correctly.

General, nonspecific job titles do not require capitalization, regardless of their perceived importance. Even “president” is seldom capitalized. For example, “The president of my company is flying in for a meeting next week” is correct because “president” is a common noun (not a proper noun). “Eight U.S. presidents were born in Virginia” is also correct because “president” isn’t a proper noun referring to a specific person. The same logic applies to all generic job titles:

• “She’s the senior director.”
• “May I speak to a manager?”

The capitalization confusion comes from an exception to this rule. If the job title precedes a proper noun, such as in a formal title, it should be capitalized. For instance, “I learned that President George Washington was born in Virginia” requires capitalization of “president,” and the name and the state are also capitalized because they are proper nouns. Other examples of capitalized job titles include:

• “He requested that Chairperson Smith respond to the inquiry.”
• “Thank you for seeing me today, Dr. Garcia.”

Similar guidelines apply to family titles such as “mom,” “dad,” “aunt,” “uncle,” “grandma,” and “grandpa.” When used in a generic form — which is most of the time — they should not be capitalized. For instance, “I made my mom’s famous chocolate chip cookies last weekend” requires a lowercase “mom” because it’s being used as a common noun. As a quick rule of thumb, if the word “my” (or another possessive adjective) comes before the word in a sentence, it’s usually lowercase. Here are some other examples of when lowercase family titles are correct:

• “I went fishing with my uncle last weekend.”
• “Is your sister Sarah joining us for brunch?”

The exception to this rule is when a family title becomes a proper noun because it replaces a name. You may ask, “Hey, Mom, can you send me your cookie recipe?” You’re addressing your mother using a proper noun in place of her name, so capitalization is required. Other situations where capitalization is necessary include:

• “What did Dad get Grandpa for his birthday?”
• “I’m going to visit Aunt Katie for the weekend.”

School subjects, majors, and general academic terms typically don’t need capitalization. For example, “I majored in biology in undergrad” is correct because “biology” is a generic noun. Other examples include:

• “Johnny was late to economics class again today.”
• “I decided to pick up a minor in art history.”

However, languages and other proper nouns incorporated into academic subjects are the exception. “I have to study for our Spanish exam this weekend” is correct capitalization because in English, languages are proper nouns. A unique exception to this rule is the term “french fries,” which is not traditionally capitalized in most American English style guides, because “french” refers to a style or technique, not the country.

This rule isn’t limited to languages. If an adjective that is related to a proper noun is part of the academic discipline, that term should be capitalized, but the rest of the title should not be:

• “He studied East Asian literature.”
• “I enjoyed studying American history.”

Note that if the official course title is used, capitalization is required, as in, “I enrolled in Childhood Psychology 101 next semester.”

Academic degrees also are often miscapitalized. Only when the full, formal name of the degree is used does the term need to be capitalized. Otherwise, degrees are considered generic nouns and should be lowercase. Consider these examples:

• “He has an associate degree.”
• “I’d like to get a master’s degree.”
• “My sister has a Master of Science in physics.”
• “I have a Bachelor of Arts in marketing.”

Seasons are often mistaken for proper nouns, but unlike holidays — Christmas, Halloween, New Year’s Eve — they are generic, common nouns and should be lowercase. For instance, “We’re buying a house this spring” is correct because, although “spring” denotes a period of time, it is not capitalized in English. Other examples include:

• “We visited New England last fall to see the foliage.”
• “The summer equinox falls on June 21.”

However, seasons are capitalized when used as part of a proper noun. Here are some correct examples:

• “The U.S. earned the second-highest medal count in the Winter Olympics.”
• “Are you going to the Rockville Fall Festival this year?”

The capitalization of cardinal directions can confuse even experienced writers and editors. Unless they’re part of a proper noun, however, they’re lowercase generic nouns. For example, “They went to southern Italy for their honeymoon” is correct because it describes a general area — it’s not the name of a proper region. Other examples include:

• “The western part of the state is experiencing a drought.”
• “We’re headed south for the winter for warmer weather.”

In some situations, directions do act as proper nouns, such as in the country and state names of South Korea and North Carolina. Distinct cultural areas also require capitalization, but what qualifies as one can be confusing. For example, the “southern” in “southern France” isn’t part of the proper noun, but “Pacific Northwest” is a complete proper noun. Determining the difference comes down to memorization. Here are some other examples:

• “The Deep South is known for its distinct cuisine.”
• “The Midwest experiences more tornadoes than the East Coast.”

These guidelines echo a common trend in English capitalization: It’s not about importance, but about specificity. A word earns a capital letter when it names a unique proper noun, not when it merely sounds official.