Capitalize the beginning of a sentence.

This hub is about when to use capitalization. My friend and I are going to a musical. Abraham Lincoln was born in Hardin County, Kentucky in 1809. Women for Women International is a fantastic organization supporting women all over the world. The Bible has many stories of the Virgin Mary and Jesus. Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, was the daughter of Zeus and Dione.

Capitalize the pronoun "I" Capitalize proper nouns: specific people, places, and organizations

Capitalize religious figures, holy books, and God

Capitalize days of the week, holidays, and months of the year but not seasons
I love the fall because of Halloween and Thanksgiving. My favorite month of the year is November. Seasons are capitalized when used in a title. The catalog for Spring 2006 will be out in February.

Capitalize countries, languages, and nationalities

We went to Spain to learn Spanish. I went on a trip with Father. (Father could be replaced with my father's name.) Your father is six feet tall. When we go to the movies with my aunts, my Aunt Marlie always has to be reminded to be quiet. Senator Dianne Feinstein was first elected in 1992. Diane Feinstein was the first woman mayor of San Francisco.

Family relationships only when used instead of proper names

Capitalize titles that precede names, but not titles that follow names

Capitalize North, South, East, and West when used as sections of the country, but not as compass directions

We lived in the Pacific Northwest for four years. Our house is northwest of Fremont.

Capitalize letter salutations and closings

Only capitalize the first word in the salutation and closing. My dear Ms. Taylor, With much love,

Capitalize the first word in a quote even when in the middle of a sentence

My Uncle Bob use to say, "The last time I said no was when they asked me if I had enough."

Capitalize major words in titles of books, written works, or songs.

A wonderful grammar book is Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss. (The Italics are not working for me, so I underlined the title of the book.) Short prepositions ("the," "a," or "an") are not capitalized if they aren't the first word.

Capitalize the first word in each line of poetry or verse

Two roads diverged in a wood, and II took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost

Capitalize members of a group

Many California Democrats will likely vote for Phil Angelides. Barry Bonds plays for the San Francisco Giants. The Roaring Twenties were a period of affluence.

Capitalize events and periods of time

The Democratic Convention is a nationally televised event. My infant eats Earth's Best baby food. We prefer Coke over Pepsi.

Capitalize company trademarks Capitalize words and abbreviations of specific names

Katie Couric recently switched from NBC to CBS. She studied Jungian psychology which focuses on the collective unconscious.

Capitalize solar system names

The fourth planet from the sun is Mars. We usually don't capitalize sun, earth and moon. The moon revolves around the earth.

Capitalize Outlines
I. Food Pyramid A. Whole grains 1. Breads, cereal, crackers, rice, and pasta