When to capitalize the word will

The capitalization of words, especially in titles, is very specific to the style of writing of the person, publication or institution controlling the pen. It may come as no surprise therefore that consensus on strict rules governing writing styles may vary. So when writing, should the word “will” be capitalized and if so, when do we capitalize “will”?

The first and most obvious instance where one should capitalize “will” is where it occurs at the beginning of a sentence (or just after a full stop). Regardless of the context, will is capitalized whenever it is used to begin a sentence. Upon closer examination, it is more than likely that this sentence will form a question rather than a statement describing intent or conviction.

In titles, a good principle to remember is that all nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, pronouns and subordinating conjunctions are capitalized. “Will” is a modal verb, meriting its capitalization when you include it in a title. A good example to draw from looks as follows:

TITLE: “There Will Be Blood.”

Above, the word “will” is capitalized along with all words falling into the classification described above. It is necessary to state that if “will” is being used as a proper noun, that is, a name for some person or entity you are writing about, then it should be capitalized regardless of where it occurs in the sentence.

Overall, the key principle in discerning when to capitalize “will” is consistency. Should you decide to stylistically omit capitalization of all words shorter than five letters, it is recommendable to do this consistently throughout your writing such that even if a reader diverges with your take on writing styles, they note it as your exercise of preference rather than a blunder in writing.

In general it should not be capitalized, but there is a fashion lately to capitalize it. The fashion seems to be arising among lawyers, whose capitalization sense seems to have become miscalibrated by the practice of capitalizing specifically defined terms in legal documents.

This may also be the reason behind the change in style in the broader business community, where it is lately popular to capitalize common nouns such as company, product, sale, or what have you. You even occasionally see capitalized verbs.

There is probably also some feeling that capitalizing will somehow makes it clearer that it is the legal document sense of the word rather than the desire or intention sense. But really, there’s rarely any such ambiguity, and, frankly, using a capital letter doesn’t actually reduce ambiguity.

Outside of an actual will, or another legal document that concerns a specific will, there is no more reason to capitalize will than there is to capitalize contract, affidavit, deposition, instrument, summons, or any other word denoting any other sort of legal document.

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Regardless of the context, will is capitalized whenever it is used to begin a sentence. … In titles, a good principle to remember is that all nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, pronouns and subordinating conjunctions are capitalized. “Will” is a modal verb, meriting its capitalization when you include it in a title.

What are the 10 rules of capitalization?

Thus, here are 10 capitalization rules you should know for a well written write-up:

What words don’t you capitalize in titles?

Words Which Should Not Be Capitalized in a Title

What is the rule for capitalization?

In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. That means you should lowercase articles, conjunctions, and prepositions—however, some style guides say to capitalize conjunctions and prepositions that are longer than five letters.

How do you know what words to capitalize in a title?

The rules are fairly standard for title case:

39 related questions found

This blog discusses 15 basic capitalization rules for English grammar. To give you an opportunity to practice your proofreading, we have left a few spelling, punctuation, or grammatical errors in the text. See if you can spot them! If you spot the errors correctly, you will be entitled to a 10% discount. 

Capitalization means writing a word with its first letter in uppercase while the remaining letters in lowercase. As a general rule, in English, a capital letter is used for the first word of a sentence and for all proper nouns. Although the rules of English capitalization seem simple at first glance, it might still be complicated in academic writing. You probably know you should capitalize proper nouns and the first word of every sentence. However, in some cases, capitalization is required for the first word in a quotation and the first word after a colon. Here are the details:

1. Capitalize the First Word of A Sentence

This rule is the most basic one. Always capitalize the first word of your sentence, whether it is a proper or common name.

• The baby is crawling.

• Where to find my book?

• I ordered a new laptop online.

2. Capitalize All Proper Names in A Sentence

A proper noun is the specific name of a person, place, object, or organization to make it more specific such as Alice, Chicago, Tuesday. The first letter of a person’s first, middle, and last names should also be capitalized (John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Thomas Alva Edison). All proper nouns -even adjectives derived from a proper noun- should be written with capital letters regardless of where they appear in a sentence.

• I ordered an Apple computer from BestBuy.

• George Washington was an American political leader who served as the first president of the United States.

The names of cities, towns, countries, counties, companies, religions, and political parties are also considered proper nouns and should be written with capital letters.

• Universal Orlando Resort, commonly known as Universal Orlando or simply ‘’Universal,’’ is a theme park based in Orlando, Florida.

Common nouns refer to a general, non-specific category or entity that name any person, place, object, or idea. They are not capitalized unless they come at the beginning of a sentence or a part of the title.

You should also capitalize words like mom, dad, grandma, and grandpa when you use them as a form of address.

3. How to Capitalize Titles of People

As discussed above, you should capitalize the first letter of a person’s first, middle, and last names (Thomas Alva Edison, John Fitzgerald Kennedy). However, you also need to capitalize suffixes (i.e., Sir Isac Newton., Alexander the Great, Alfred the Great) and titles.

When titles such as Mr., Mrs., or Dr. are considered a part of their name, they should be capitalized too. This rule is followed in a situation in which you address a person by his or her position as though it is a part of their name.

Capitalize	Do Not Capitalize
I completed the report on President George Washington.	George Washington was an American political leader who served as the first president of the United States.
When I started at Apple, I worked as an intern with Senior Vice President Luca Maestri for one month.	Luca Maestri is one of the senior vice presidents of the company.

a. Do not capitalize occupations and titles when they are not used as part of a name.

• The journal’s chief editor

• He was a libertarian senator. 

b. Do not capitalize titles when used descriptively.

• Dr. Lawrence, who will chair the meeting, will be here soon.

b. Titles immediately following the name do not ordinarily require capitalization. 

• Dr. Lawrence, the chairperson, will join us at the meeting.

c. When the article ‘‘the’’ appears in front of the job title, do not capitalize.

• Lawrence, the chairperson, will be here soon.

• The chairperson, Dr. Lawrence, will join us at the meeting.

• Goodman was the managing editor of the journal. 

d. Capitalize titles in signature lines.

Although there is no universal rule on writing titles in the complimentary closing of a letter, our editors recommend capitalizing a titles when they follow the name on the address or signature line. However, you can leave it in lowercase as titles are generally not capitalized when following a name in text. Both ways are acceptable. So, choose a method and be consistent.

• Mike Lawrence, Chairperson

• John Goodman, Managing Editor 

4. Capitalize Common Nouns When They Are Used to Name A Specific Entity

Common nouns are considered proper nouns when they are used to name a specific entity.

Common noun	Proper noun
The President will speak to the nation this weekend.	The action has not been approved by the United Nations.
He was a libertarian.	His nomination was forced upon the Libertarian Party.
It is a Gothic cathedral dating from the 15th century.	Florence Cathedral is considered the most beautiful building in the city.

5. Capitalization After Colons

In most cases, you do not have to capitalize a word after a colon. In British English, the first letter after a colon is capitalized only if it’s a proper noun or an acronym. However, the first word after a colon is sometimes capitalized in American English if it begins a complete sentence.

a. List of things or a phrase

When a colon introduces a list of things or a phrase that is not a complete sentence, do not capitalize the first word after the colon unless it is a proper noun or a common noun that is used to name a specific entity.

b. Complete sentence (check your style guide)

When a colon introduces a complete sentence, you need to check your style guide to see whether you capitalize the first word after the colon.

According to the APA Publication Manual, for instance, the first word after the colon is capitalized only if it begins a complete sentence. In APA style, if the clause following the colon is a complete sentence, it begins with a capital letter.

They have agreed on the outcome: informed participants perform better than do uninformed participants.	Incorrect
They have agreed on the outcome: Informed participants perform better than do uninformed participants.	Correct

However, The Chicago Manual of Style has a different perspective on it. It requires to capitalize the first word following the colon if there is more than one complete explanatory sentence following the colon.

John prefers wearing a brimmed cap: Strong light often triggers his migraine.	Incorrect
John prefers wearing a brimmed cap: strong light often triggers his migraine.	Correct
John prefers wearing a brimmed cap: strong light often triggers his migraine. He also thinks it is fashionable.	Incorrect
John prefers wearing a brimmed cap: Strong light often triggers his migraine. He also thinks it is fashionable.	Correct

c. The other basic rule of APA Style is to capitalize the first word after the colon in a title.

The Impact of Job-Related Stress on Burnout: a Florida Case Study	Incorrect
The Impact of Job-Related Stress on Burnout: A Florida Case Study	Correct

d. Never capitalize a word after a colon when introducing a list:

The variables of the study are as follows: Burnout, job-related stress, and health-related quality of life.	Incorrect
The variables of the study are as follows: burnout, job-related stress, and health-related quality of life.	Correct

6. Capitalization of the First Word of Quotations

When the quote is a complete sentence, you should capitalize the first word of the quote.

• James said, “The motorcycle slid sideways and skidded approximately 50 meters.” 

Do not capitalize the first word of partial quotes.

• “The motorcycle slid sideways,” James said, “and skidded approximately 50 meters.’’ 

7. Capitalize Days, Months, Holidays

The names of days, months, festivals, and holidays are considered proper nouns and, therefore, should be capitalized.

• Tuesday was more productive than Monday.

• I love the Fourth of July.

• Put that on your Christmas wish list.

• Do you have any plans for Valentine’s Day?

• Her death took place about the end of Ramadan. 

8. Capitalize Time Periods and Events 

Specific time periods, eras, and historical events are considered proper names and thus need to be capitalized.

• The Reformation is considered one of the major movements within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe.

• History is commonly divided into three separate periods: the Ancient Period, the Middle Ages, and the Modern Time.

• World War I was once called the Great War.

• The American Revolution took many ideas from the early civilizations of Greece and Rome. 

9. Do Not Capitalize Centuries

Centuries—and the numbers before them—should not be capitalized.

• During the eighteenth century, slave trading and human trafficking expanded on a global scale.

10. Do Not Capitalize Seasons

However, the name of the four seasons are not proper nouns, so should not be capitalized unless they appear as part of a proper noun.

• The night is the winter, the morning and evening are the spring and fall, and noon is the summer.

• I live near Winter Park.

• The Italian city of Turin hosted the 2006 Winter Olympics.

11. Capitalize Countries, Cities, Nationalities, and Languages

The names of countries, cities, nationalities, and languages are considered proper nouns, and they should be capitalized.

• My father is Irish, and my mother is British.

• I am studying French and German and Latin and Greek.

• On their refusal, the Russians attacked them at midnight.

• Few cities in Europe can match the cultural richness of Berlin. 

12. Capitalize the Most Words in Headings and Titles

In general, you need to capitalize all major words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, and all proper nouns) in titles and headings. That means articles, conjunctions, and prepositions should not be capitalized. However, the capitalization rules for the titles and headings sometimes differ according to style guides.

For instance, APA Style has two types of capitalization for titles: Title case and sentence case. In title case, APA Style requires all major words to be capitalized, and most minor words should be in lowercase. However, in sentence case, most major and minor words are lowercase unless they are proper nouns. According to APA Style, nouns, verbs (including linking verbs), adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, and all words of four letters or more are considered major words; while short (i.e., three letters or fewer) conjunctions, short prepositions, and all articles are considered minor words (APA 6th edition).

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is the seventh and final novel in the series. 

13. Capitalization of Directions and Regions

Capitalize north, south, east, and west (including derivative words) when they refer to a direction or general area or when they designate definite regions or are an integral part of a proper name.

• I live in the south of France.

• First, go north on I-94 and then east.

• The main parts of the southern region of the country were not affected by the ongoing drought. 

However, capitalization is required when these words are part of a proper name or refer to a specific region.

• Record temperatures continued to bake the Midwestern and Southern states. 

• Winds are expected to become northerly later today.

• The South Pole is claimed by seven nations.

• He’s from the Far East, not from the Middle East.

• Western Christianity has played a prominent role in the shaping of Western civilization.

Also, you need to capitalize well-known region names such as East Coast, West Coast, and Southern California. However, a geographical area considered a distinct region might vary by country.

• The East Coast of the United States is also known as the Eastern Seaboard.

• The West Coast is the coastline along which the continental Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. 

14. Theories, Laws, Models, and Disciplines

In general, there is no need to capitalize the names of laws, theories, models, disciplines, statistical procedures, or hypotheses as they can be understood to serve more as common nouns as opposed to proper nouns. Note that proper nouns within these terms are capitalized.

Scientific theories and models	rational choice theory, social constructionist theory, germ theory of disease, Newton’s law of gravitation, problem solving model, crisis intervention model
Scales and inventories	Maslach Burnout Inventory, Transformational Leadership Scale
Laws and schools of though	Maslow’s law of hierarchy, behaviorism, the German historical school, French liberal school
Disciplines and subjects	economics, Mathematics, English, anthropology, chemistry

 Keep in mind that the names of inventories, questionnaires, or tests should be capitalized.

• Maslach Burnout Inventory

• Transformational Leadership Scale

15. Closing a Letter with A Valediction

When we sign off on letters or send emails, we generally close them with valediction such as «Regards», «Best», «Best wishes», «Best regards», «Sincerely», or «Cordially yours.» The first word in these farewell words or complimentary closes should be capitalized, just like the beginning of a sentence.

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There are only a few rules of capitalization. They’re easy to remember. In English, capital letters are most commonly used at the start of a sentence, for the pronoun I, and for proper nouns.

1. Capitalize the first word in every sentence

You should always capitalize the first letter of the first word in a sentence, no matter what the word is. Take, for example, the following sentences: The weather was beautiful. It was sunny all day. Even though the and it aren’t proper nouns, they’re capitalized here because they’re the first words in their sentences. There is one rare possible exception to this rule: a brand name that begins with a lowercase letter like eBay or iPad. Even these normally lowercase words are usually capitalized at the start of sentences, but a style guide may make an exception for them.

2. Capitalize the pronoun I

Pronouns are words that replace nouns. I, you, and me are all examples of pronouns. While you and me are usually lowercase, the pronoun I should always be capitalized, regardless of where it appears in a sentence.

For example, in A Beautiful Mind, Sylvia Nasar writes, “What I got back was an envelope on which my address was written in different-colored crayons.” Here, the pronoun I is correctly capitalized even though it isn’t at the beginning of the sentence.

Capitalize proper nouns

A proper noun is the special noun or name used for a specific person, place, company, or other thing. Proper nouns should always be capitalized.

3. Names of people

People’s names are proper nouns, and therefore should be capitalized. The first letter of someone’s first, middle, and last name is always capitalized, as in John William Smith. Take note that some non-English surnames may begin with lowercase letters, such as Vincent van Gogh or Leonardo da Vinci.

4. Names of places

Other proper nouns include countries, cities, and sometimes regions, such as Bulgaria, Paris, and the American South. Geographic features that have names should also be capitalized, as in Mt. Kilimanjaro and the Pacific Ocean.

Landmarks and monuments also start their proper names with capital letters, such as the Empire State Building and the Golden Gate Bridge. Street names are always capitalized, too (e.g., Main Street). Although rare, some place names might have a preposition in them that is not capitalized, such as the Tower of Pisa or Truth or Consequences, New Mexico.

5. Names of companies and trademarks

The names of companies and organizations should also be capitalized, such as Nike and Stanford University. There are some exceptions: sometimes a company may choose not to use a capital letter at the beginning of its name or product as a stylistic choice. Examples include eBay and the iPhone.

6. Capitalize honorary and professional titles 

Titles like Mr., Mrs., and Dr., should be capitalized. When addressing someone with their professional title, you should use a capital letter at the beginning. For example, you’d address a letter to the president as Dear President Obama. Similarly, you should capitalize job titles when they come before a person’s name, as in General Manager Sheila Davis will be at the meeting. Also use a capital letter when you’re directly addressing a person by their title without using their name, as in We need the paper, Senator.  On the other hand, titles are not capitalized if used generally as in Rebecca is the president of the company, or We talked with the queen, Elizabeth II.

Our vote is for this article that has all the details on when you need to capitalize president.

7. Capitalize familial relationships 

Words that indicate family relationships should also be capitalized when used as titles in front of a person’s name. However, if you’re just talking about relationships with no names involved, the titles shouldn’t be capitalized. For example, you’d capitalize Uncle Ben and Grandpa Ed will be at the picnic, but you wouldn’t capitalize them in a sentence like My uncle and my grandpa will be at the picnic. Similar to the rules for professional titles, you should capitalize the names of family titles when they’re used in place of proper names. For instance, in Jane Eyre Charlotte Brontë writes, “She is at the lodge, Aunt.”

8. Capitalize major words in a title

The titles of books, songs, newspapers, and works of art should all be capitalized. Examples include Moby Dick, “Jailhouse Rock,” New York Times, and The Last Supper. If you need help knowing specifically which words get capitalized in titles of creative works, check out our helpful guide to title capitalization.

9. Capitalize days, months, and (sometimes) seasons

The names of days and months should be capitalized, such as January, September, Wednesday, and Sunday.

A season should be capitalized when it’s being used as part of a proper noun as in Winter Olympics. In poetry and other literature, personification is giving an animal, inanimate object, or abstract notion the qualities and attributes of a human. When a season is used this way, it should be capitalized. (Take, for example, how Charles Mair uses summer in a poem: “We will muse on Summer’s ploys.”)

10. Capitalize holidays

The names of holidays, such as Christmas, Halloween, and Hanukkah, are capitalized because they are considered proper nouns. You would not, however, capitalize a season: Christmas season. But if you add day to a holiday, you would capitalize this word: New Year’s Day and Christmas Day. Similarly, you would capitalize the word eve in holidays such as Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

11. Capitalize time periods

Historical eras should be capitalized. For instance, use Middle Ages, Dark Ages, and the Renaissance. You’d also capitalize prehistoric eras such as Stone Age and Bronze Age.

12. Capitalize countries, languages, and nationalities

The names of countries are proper nouns, which means they are capitalized, of course. Languages and nationalities are capitalized as well. A person who is from Kenya, is a Kenyan and likely speaks Swahili. A Chilean is a person from Chile, where the official language is Spanish.

13. Capitalize acronyms

Acronyms should be capitalized. NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), POTUS (President of the United States), and DOB (Date Of Birth) are all capitalized. Some acronyms have been incorporated as recognizable words that should not be capitalized (laser, or “light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation”); when in doubt, it’s best to consult a dictionary.

Of course, in informal conversations (like texting), acronyms (lol, brb, idk, etc.) aren’t always capitalized. Not all rules apply to very casual writing styles.

Capitalize after certain punctuation

Of course, you already know to capitalize at the start of each sentence. There are other interesting sentence structures that require capitalization.

14. After the first word in a quote containing a complete sentence

When a quote is added to a sentence, it is introduced with quotation marks and a capital letter:

• When my father asked where I was going, I said, “Some of my friends are going to the movies.”

When the attribution is in the middle of the sentence, capitalization rules are also important:

• “The library is closed,” he said, “but you can return your books in the drop box.”

In this case, the first word (the) is capitalized. Because the sentence continues after the attribution, the word but is not capitalized.

You don’t always have to use the word but, did you know? Learn some alternatives.

Similarly, a colon may introduce a quote that comes after an independent clause. For example,

• “Bob seemed to like that idea: ‘Yeah, let’s do that!’”

In this sentence, the words before the colon could stand alone as a complete sentence. The colon emphasizes the coming quote.

If a quote contains a single word, a phrase, or an incomplete sentence, the first word typically isn’t capitalized unless it is a proper noun. For example:

• He said that my approach to solving math problems was “unique.”
• When asked, the mayor said the city “was prepared for all possible outcomes.” 

Check out our guide to quotation marks to learn more about these tricky punctuation marks.

15. (Sometimes) after a colon and rarely after a semicolon

If what follows the colon is a complete sentence, some style guides do recommend capitalizing the word that follows the colon.

• It snowed all morning: The roads were impassable by 8 am.

Capitalization after a semicolon is not required and would be grammatically incorrect. When an explanation takes the form of a second independent clause that follows a main independent clause, you can join the two clauses into a single sentence with a semicolon. Here is an example:

• Jenny had an idea; she would pick up a cake on her way to her friend’s house.

However, you would capitalize proper nouns or the pronoun I if they follow a semicolon as in Marcy got a bag of candy; I got a bag of rocks. 

Colons and semicolons are notoriously tough punctuation marks to use, but you can master them by using our detailed explanations of how to use colons and semicolons.