Capitalising Titles

Capitalising Titles exercise

• Which words in a title are capitalised?

  Hints

  Here is an example of a correctly capitalised title using the preposition in:

  Pearl in the Treasure Chest

  Here is an example of a correctly capitalised title using the conjunction and:

  The Boy and His Dog

  There are seven types of words that are capitalised and there are three types of words that are not capitalised.

  Solution

  Rules tell us which words should be capitalised in a title. Important words are capitalised. These include:

  • the first word
  • the last word
  • nouns
  • pronouns
  • verbs
  • adverbs
  • adjectives

  Words that are not capitalised are:

  • articles
  • prepositions
  • conjunctions

• Which titles are correctly capitalised?

  Hints

  The first word in the title is always capitalised.

  Articles such as the and a, are not capitalised in titles.

  Solution

  the Diary of a happy Kid is wrong because:

  • the word the should be capitalised since it is the first word in the title
  • the word happy should be capitalised since it is an adjective.

  The Magic Inside The Earth is wrong because:

  • the word the should not be capitalised since it is an article in the middle of the sentence.

• Can you find the correct titles?

  Hints

  The first and last words in a title should be capitalised.

  Prepositions in the middle of a title should not be capitalised.

  Solution

  The answers and explanations are as follows:

  The Great Pie Contest
  

  • The word "the" is capitalised because it is the first word of the title.

  Tank and Axel's Race
  

  • The word "and" is not capitalised because it is a conjunction in the middle of the title.

  A Magical Picnic
  

  • The word "picnic" is capitalised because it is the last word in the title and it is a noun.

  A Pirate's Ride on Stormy Seas
  

  • The word "on" is not capitalised because it is a preposition in the middle of the title.

• Can you find the mistakes?

  Hints

  Prepositions are words like in, to, under, over and of.

  Conjunctions are words like and, but and so.

  There is one mistake in each title.

  Solution

  Here we can see the correctly highlighted titles.

  1. The word In should not be capitalised because it is a preposition.
  2. The word And should not be capitalised because it is a conjunction.
  3. The word birthday should be capitalised because it is an adjective here.
  4. The word a should be capitalised here because it is the first word of the title. It is also an article, but it is not in the middle of the title.
  5. The word mystery should be capitalised because it is a noun.
  6. The word of should not be capitalised because it is a preposition.

  __________________________________________________

  The correct titles are:

  1. The Noise in the Closet
  2. Lemonade and Summer Days
  3. A Special Birthday Present
  4. A Bike Ride with Grandma
  5. The Mystery of the Missing Homework
  6. The Tale of Dani's Haunted Dollhouse

• Why are these titles not correct?

  Hints

  Here is an example of a correctly capitalised title:

  The Adventures of the Lost Dog

  The first and last words are capitalised as well as nouns.

  This title is correctly capitalised:

  Mary and the Crocodile

  The article, the, is not capitalised.

  Solution

  1. a Day at the Beach is wrong because the first word is not capitalised. The title should be capitalised like this: A Day at the Beach.
  2. Charlie and The Scooter is wrong because articles in the middle of the title should not be capitalised. The title should be capitalised like this: Charlie and the Scooter.
  3. The Magic bathroom is wrong because the last word is not capitalised. The title should be capitalised like this: The Magic Bathroom.
  4. The fairy in Black is wrong because the noun fairy is not capitalised. The title should be capitalised like this: The Fairy in Black.

• Complete the titles using correct capitalisation.

  Hints

  Prepositions like on and of are not capitalised.

  The first word of a title is always capitalised.

  Solution

  The correct answers are as follows:

  The Tale of the Buzzing Beekeeper

  • The word "the" is capitalised because it is the first word in the title.

  All That and a Jar of Honey

  • The word "and" is not capitalised because it is a conjunction in the middle of the title.

  Summer Bee Stings

  • The word "stings" is capitalised because it is the last word of the title and a noun.

  Bees on the Loose

  • The word "on" is not capitalised because it is a preposition in the middle of the title.