Capitalization

At first glance, the rules of English capitalization seem simple. You probably know you should capitalize proper nouns and the first word of every sentence. But you also (sometimes) capitalize the first word of a quote. Usually you don’t capitalize after a colon, but there are exceptions. And what do you do when you’re not sure whether something is a proper noun?

English Capitalization Rules:

1 Capitalize the First Word of a Sentence

This one’s easy. Always capitalize the first word of a sentence.

The cat is sleeping.

Where did I put that book?

Hey! It’s great to see you! How have you been?

2 Capitalize Names and Other Proper Nouns

You should always capitalize people’s names.

My favorite author is Jane Austen.

Tom and Diane met at Judy’s house.

Have you met my dog, Boomer?

Names are proper nouns. The names of cities, countries, companies, religions, and political parties are also proper nouns, so you should capitalize them, too.

We experienced some beautiful Southern California weather last fall when we attended a Catholic wedding in San Diego.

You should also capitalize words like mom and grandpa when they are used as a form of address.

Just wait until Mom sees this!

But

My mom is not going to like this.

3 Don’t Capitalize After a Colon (Usually)

In most cases, you don’t need to capitalize after a colon.

I have one true passion: wombat racing.

There are a couple of common exceptions. One is when the word following the colon is a proper noun.

There is only one place I want to visit: New York City.

The other exception is when the words following the colon form one or more complete sentences.

Maggie wears a brimmed cap at all times for these two reasons: Strong light often gives her a headache. She also likes the way it looks.

4 Capitalize the First Word of a Quote (Sometimes)

Capitalize the first word of a quote when the quote is a complete sentence.

Mario asked, “What is everyone doing this weekend?”

Stacy answered, “My sister and I are going to the water park.”

Don’t capitalize the first word of partial quotes.

Gretchen said she was “way too busy” to join the gym.

Mr. Thompson described the rules as “extremely difficult to understand if you don’t have a law degree.”

5 Capitalize Days, Months, and Holidays, But Not Seasons

The names of days, months, and holidays are proper nouns, so you should capitalize them.

I hate Mondays!

Tom’s birthday is in June.

Oh no! I forgot about Valentine’s Day!

The names of seasons, however, are not proper nouns, so there’s no need to capitalize them.

I hate winter!

Having a summer birthday is the best.

6 Capitalize Most Words in Titles

The capitalization rules for titles of books, movies, and other works vary a little between style guides. 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.

Sense and Sensibility is better than Pride and Prejudice.

The first movie of the series is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

7 Capitalize Cities, Countries, Nationalities, and Languages

The names of cities, countries, nationalities, and languages are proper nouns, so you should capitalize them.

English is made up of many languages, including Latin, German, and French.

My mother is British, and my father is Dutch.

The capital of Botswana is Gaborone.

8 Capitalize Time Periods and Events (Sometimes)

Specific periods, eras, and historical events that have proper names should be capitalized.

Most of the World War I veterans are now deceased.

In the Middle Ages, poor hygiene was partly responsible for the spreading of bubonic plague.

Middle school students often enjoy studying the social changes that took place during the Roaring Twenties.

However, centuries—and the numbers before them—are not capitalized.

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, England blossomed into an empire.

7 Ways to Write an Effective Out of Office Message

When I was working full-time in media relations, exchanging emails with journalists all day every day, I learned one thing—out-of-office messages don’t have to be boring. Although most of the out-of-office replies I got were pretty standard, a few stood out by either making me laugh or providing me with interesting information. Here are some ways to make good use of your own out-of-office message.

7 Cool Out-of-Office Message Examples

1 The Social Media Booster

I’m always trying to amplify my social media signal. (Ahem! Follow me on Twitter if you like information about writing and productivity.) Your out-of-office message can help you accomplish that.

Hey, there!

I’m out of the office this week, but my Twitter signal is always on. Seriously, I’ve got robotic wonder thumbs! (No, not really.) I never fail to tweet fascinating stories about how people can win big with their marketing efforts. So, until I’m back at my desk, won’t you follow me [link]?

Whether you follow me or not, I’ll get back to you as soon as I can upon returning to my desk on July 17.

2 The Hand-Off

Sometimes your position is so crucial that people will need to have someone to turn to in your absence. When that’s the case, it’s often best to keep things professional by telling people when you’ll return and who they can contact in your absence. But, if your situation is a bit less formal, you can also have some fun.

I’ll be out of the office until Monday, July 24. If your message is urgent, please reach out to the lovely and talented Bob Smith at bob@domain.com. If you have breaking news to share, contact Big News Journal’s hard working managing editor, Ashley Jones, at ashley@domain.com. Just make sure your news is juicy. Ashley has no time for your shenanigans!

3 The GIF

We work hard and we take our work seriously. But sometimes it’s okay to have a little fun. If your job position is such that you can get away with it, why not dig up a fun gif to go with your out-of-office message? It’ll lighten someone’s day and make your email memorable.

I’m out of the office until Monday, July 17 without email and WiFi. I’m sure to return tanned and refreshed, at which time I’ll reply to your email cheerfully. I will not, however, be able to get away with wearing my vacation shirt once I’m back to work. RIP, vacation shirt.

via GIPHY

Here’s a tip: Get cool gifs to use in your email at Giphy or Tenor. Just don’t get too crazy and make sure the gif is appropriate for the culture of your office and your professional field in general. You don’t want to inadvertently send the wrong message.

4 The Networking Opportunity

If you’re going to a professional conference, odds are good that a lot of the colleagues who email you will be there, too. Conferences are a great place to ramp up your networking efforts, so let people know where they can find you.

Greetings! I’m out of the office July 24-28 attending the Epic Professional Conference. Are you there, too? You’ll find me walking the floors with a Starbuck’s coffee in my hand, comfy kicks on my sore feet, and a bag full of brochures and swag. (I hope someone’s giving away those light-up bouncy balls again this year. I burned mine out.)

If you’re at the conference, I’d love to meet up to chat about your email marketing strategies. Feel free to text me at (123) 456-7890 so we can connect.

Here’s a tip: Be careful giving out phone numbers. Remember that complete strangers may send you email, and your auto-reply could be sending them information you’d rather keep private.

5 The “Read My Stuff”

If you write, and you publish, then you’ve got content to promote. Why not use your out-of-office message to make anyone who reaches out to you aware of it?

Hello! Thanks for getting in touch. I’m out of the office until August 5 with limited access to email. But never fear! I’ve left you with some helpful writing tips to read and share.

• Improve Your Writing Time with Quick Recipe Ideas
• How to Give Writing Feedback That’s Constructive, Not Crushing
• How to Improve Writing Skills in 15 Easy Steps

I’m looking forward to connecting with you when I return.

6 The Bot Acknowledgement

While you’re away, your email is going to be handled by a bot. Everyone knows it, so you might as well acknowledge it in a fun automated email.

This is Jane’s bot. Jane is indisposed and unable to respond to your email. I’m replying to let you know that she will return to her desk on August 1. It is her intent to attend to your request promptly at that time.

Meanwhile, Jane leaves you with the following message. Please ponder its significance:

“I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords.” —Jane

via GIPHY

7 The Lead Generator

There’s really never a bad time to collect leads or subscribers. Your out-of-office email can be a handy tool for lead generation. When someone tries to connect with you, why not tell them how they can stay connected?

Hi, and thanks for writing! I’m out of the office with no access to email until August 3. If your request is urgent, you can contact helena@handbasket.com for assistance. Otherwise, I’ll get back to you as quickly as possible when I return.

While you wait, why not subscribe to our fantastic newsletter? You’ll get actionable tips once per week geared toward helping you grow your online business. Join us here [link].

Do’s and Don’ts for Out-of-Office Emails

It’s okay to have some fun with your out-of-office message in most cases, but there are a few simple rules you should always follow to make sure that, ultimately, your message is both useful and professional.

• Do check your company’s policy on out-of-office messages. If there’s no firm policy, it might be best to check in with your supervisor and have your message approved in advance.
• Don’t reveal too much. Strangers, spammers, and maybe even scammers could potentially see your auto-reply. Keep that in mind before you tell all and sundry that your house is vacant.
• Do know your audience. If you send more formal emails during your working hours, don’t create an informal out-of-office email for your downtime.
• Don’t make typos. You don’t want to be blasting out the same spelling mistake or grammar error for a week, do you?
• Do consider a message rule. If your email client will handle it, consider creating a message rule where your auto-reply goes out only on the second message from the same person. That way, you won’t be oversharing your status with spammers or colleagues who really don’t care that you’re away.

Now, go enjoy that vacation! You’ve earned it.

MLB Fans and Grammar: A Whole New Ball Game

As Major League Baseball gears up for the All-Star Game, Grammarly teamed up with The Wall Street Journal once again to see which team has the most grammatically correct fans. We looked at all 30 official MLB team sites and analyzed the top 150 comments for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. Each team had an average of over 10,000 words.

The Cleveland Indians hit a home run making the fewest mistakes (just 3.6 mistakes per 100 words) while the New York Mets strike out making 13.9 mistakes per 100 words. Take a look at the scorecard below to see how your favorite team stacked up.

To share this infographic with your readers, embed this in your blog post by pasting the following HTML snippet into your web editor:

Please attribute this infographic to https://www.grammarly.com/grammar-check.

What is a Reflexive Pronoun?

Reflexive pronouns are words ending in -self or -selves that are used when the subject and the object of a sentence are the same (e.g., I believe in myself). They can act as either objects or indirect objects. The nine English reflexive pronouns are myself, yourself, himself, herself, oneself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves.

Grammatical terms might seem complicated and a bit arbitrary when you first hear them, but they really aren’t, once you get to know them. The term reflexive is a good example. Through Latin, reflexive is related to reflect; this is useful to remember because a reflexive pronoun reflects back upon a sentence’s subject.

Reflexive Pronouns Are Direct or Indirect Objects

A reflexive pronoun can be a direct object in a sentence when the subject and the direct object are one and the same.

Jack decided to reward Mary with a dinner out.

Jack decided to reward himself with a dinner out.

In the first sentence, Mary is the object of reward. Jack, the subject, is the object of reward in the second sentence, so we use the pronoun himself.

Reflexive pronouns can also play the indirect object role in a sentence.

Cynthia pours a cup of tea for me every morning.

Cynthia pours a cup of tea for herself every morning.

It is worth noting that referring twice to the same noun as subject and object (rather than using a reflexive pronoun for the object) sounds just a bit creepy. “Jack decided to cook Jack a special supper,” for example, sounds unnerving to a native English speaker.

Common Errors with Reflexive Pronouns

The misuse of reflexive pronouns abounds in certain sectors. (We’re looking at you, Business Speak.) The most common mistake of all is the incorrect use of reflexive pronouns in compound subjects or compound objects in a sentence.

Here is an example of the former type of offense.

Andrew and myself will conduct today’s meeting.

How do we know that myself does not belong as part of the compound subject (Andrew and the speaker) in this sentence? Remove Andrewfrom the equation to see if what remains functions correctly.

Myself will conduct today’s meeting.

Clearly, myself does not work, but the subject pronoun I does.

I will conduct today’s meeting.

Andrew and I will conduct today’s meeting.

The improper use of reflexive pronouns as objects is just as prevalent in today’s business world.

You may submit your expenses to Mr. Martin or myself before Friday.

The subject of this sentence is you, and the indirect objects are Mr. Martin and the speaker. Taking Mr. Martin out of the sentence will reveal that myself will not work.

You may submit your expenses to myself before Friday.

Rather, the sentence requires the object pronoun me.

You may submit your expenses to me before Friday.

You may submit your expenses to Mr. Martin or me before Friday.

Reflexive Pronouns as Intensive Pronouns

Intensive pronouns are reflexive pronouns that are used to emphasize the subject or antecedent in a sentence, often in the sense of “and not someone else.” You can tell when a word ending in -self or -selves is being used as an intensive pronoun because the sentence it is part of will not change in meaning significantly if you remove it.

Jack made his supper himself. (No one else did it for him.)

I closed the store on Saturday myself. (I didn’t have an employee to do it.)

We ourselves were forced to pilot the boat to safety. (Perhaps the captain was indisposed.)

Reflexive Pronoun for the Singular They

Although you should probably avoid using the singular they until it is more widely accepted as good English, the Associated Press green-lit its use this year. One of the reasons for not using the singular they in place of the more traditional, albeit more complicated, he or she is that it yields a very awkward reflexive pronoun: themself. For the time being, it is best to avoid constructions using themself, even if it results in more words.

Every parent needs to take a break for themself now and again.

Every parent needs to take a break for himself or herself now and again.

Every parent needs to take a break for him- or herself now and again.

Now that you’ve learned more about reflexive pronouns, give yourself a pat on the back.

5 Reasons You Should Read a Damn Book

Watching too much TV is bad for your health. According to some sources, being a couch potato will make you less smart. It will consume your time, influence your social relationships, affect your physical health in a very bad way, affect your emotional well-being, and skew your worldview. And the list goes on.

But this isn’t an article about the perils of TV watching. It’s an article about why books might be a better pastime (or passion, if you get to that level) for you to pick up.

1 You’ll sleep better

Sleep has two nemeses: light and stress. TV screens, your smartphone, and your tablet emit light. And the blue part of the spectrum they emit is especially problematic because it makes you more alert and affects the production of melatonin, a very important hormone in the sleep-wake cycle. Stress also causes the body to release hormones that interfere with sleep.

And how can a book help you? Well, it doesn’t emit light. And it also helps reduce stress levels.

2 Not all good books have movies or TV shows based on them

The interplay between TV shows and movies based on books can work to your benefit. Let’s say you like Fight Club. You loved the story, you loved the weirdness, you got hooked on the transgression it shows. But you can’t find many movies that give you the same sort of rush. Luckily, the movie was based on a novel by Chuck Palahniuk, and it’s not the only good one he wrote. So far, two of his novels have been adapted for the big screen, but to access the majority of his work, you will have to read.

3 Some of the TV shows or movies you like are based on real books

That interplay we mentioned works the other way around, too. You like Game of Thrones? You know it’s based on a book series. You like Harry Potter? Also based on a book series. And just imagine how much more content these books contain compared to their screen adaptations. You’re missing out if you’re not reading them.

4 Books are like jogging for your brain

Studies have shown that reading books with a strong narrative arc leaves an impression on your brain, boosting the connectivity in the parts of your brain responsible for language reception. That boost lasts for a couple of days, so you need to keep it up to reap the benefits. The takeaway is that reading books will make your brain work better.

5 You get what you put in

How many hours of fun can a book give you? It depends on how long the book is, sure, but it also depends on how much of yourself you invest in the book. Will you spend time thinking about it, imagining what every character looks like, how they must have felt when this or that happened to them? In that case, a book can keep you happy and entertained for weeks.

Concrete Nouns vs. Abstract Nouns

All nouns fall into one of two categories: concrete nouns and abstract nouns.

What Is a Concrete Noun?

A concrete noun is a noun that can be identified through one of the five senses (taste, touch, sight, hearing, or smell). Consider the examples below:

Would someone please answer the phone?

In the sentence above, the noun phone is a concrete noun: you can touch it, see it, hear it, and maybe even smell it or taste it.

What is that noise?

Even though noise can’t be touched—and the noise may even be coming from several places—you can hear the noise, so it’s a concrete noun.

After his retirement, Mr. Bond pursued his dream of photographing rainbows.

Rainbows is a concrete noun: they can be seen. Mr. Bond is also a concrete noun, but dream and retirement are not. These nouns are considered abstract nouns. We’ll discuss abstract nouns in more detail below.

What Is an Abstract Noun?

An abstract noun is a noun that cannot be perceived using one of the five senses (i.e., taste, touch, sight, hearing, smelling). Look at the examples below:

We can’t imagine the courage it took to do that.

Courage is an abstract noun because it cannot be seen, heard, tasted, touched, or smelled.

Below are two more examples of abstract nouns in context.

Early paleontologists assumed that the small brains of some dinosaurs indicated stupidity of the species.

Higher education is strongly recommended.