Capitalization of Proper Nouns
and Common Nouns

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The Rules for Capitalizing Nouns

Proper nouns are capitalized. A proper noun is the personal name or title given to something. Common nouns are not capitalized unless they start a sentence. A common noun common noun is the word for something. It's the word you would find in a dictionary for something.

The difference between proper nouns and common nouns is obvious when you see some examples side by side.

Proper Nouns	Common Nouns
New York Lucky Pacific Ocean Uncle George Sears Tower	city cat ocean uncle tower

Read more about capitalizing common nouns (e.g., after a colon or starting a quotation).

More Examples of Proper Nouns and Common Nouns

Here are some more proper nouns and common nouns shown side by side:

Common Noun	Proper Noun
dog	Rover
ship	Titanic
city	New York
auntie	Auntie Sally
captain	Captain Jones
doctor	Doctor Smith

More about Capital Letters for Proper Nouns (Given Names)

Use capital letters for the names given to people, places, planets, days of the week, honorifics (e.g., Sergeant Smith, Uncle Fred, Doctor Jones), months, holidays, departments, clubs, companies, institutions, bridges, buildings, monuments, parks, ships, hotels, streets, historical events, and documents. These are known as proper nouns. Proper nouns are often personal names or titles.

More about Lowercase Letters for Common Nouns (Words for Things)

Do not use a capital letter for a common noun, unless it starts a sentence. Bear in mind that this could be a new sentence after a colon or at the start of a quotation. Remember that a common noun is the word we use for something, e.g., "dog," "ship," "auntie." It is the word that appears in the dictionary.

Common nouns are further classified depending on their meaning or structure.

Show me an infographic

Read more about the different types of noun.

Examples Showing Correct Capitalization

All of these examples have at least one proper noun (all shown in bold) and at least one common noun (highlighted).

• The next lake the party visited was Lake Michigan.
(In this example, the first "lake" is a common noun. It is the word for an in-land water feature. The second one in "Lake Michigan" is part of a proper noun. It is the name of the lake.)
• The Church in London is not actually a church but a public house.
(Notice that the first "Church" is a proper noun, but the second "church" is a common noun.)
• It was a rewarding day, and I intend to visit here again on Armistice Day next year.
(The first use of "day" is a common noun. The second in "Armistice Day" is part of a proper noun.)
• Please ask Sergeant Allan or the other sergeant to arrange a patrol.
("Sergeant Allan" is a proper noun. The word "sergeant" is a common noun.)

Stick to the Rules!

Do not be tempted to give a common noun a capital letter just because it is an important word in your sentence.

• Place your order using the form in our latest Brochure.
• We value our Clients' opinions.
• I'm having the best day of my life, and I owe it all to not going to Church! (Homer Simpson)
• Lisa, Vampires are make-believe, like elves, gremlins, and Eskimos. (Homer Simpson)
(The word "Vampires" is wrong. The word "Eskimos" is correct.)
• We live in an age when a Pizza gets to your home before a Firefighter.

Video Lesson

Here is a video summarizing the difference between common nouns and proper nouns:

Are you a visual learner? Do you prefer video to text? Here is a list of all our grammar videos.

Quirks in Business Writing

In business writing particularly, many writers consider it good practice (usually for politeness) to capitalize common nouns, such as "Department" and "Director."

• The manager of your finance department confirmed the booking on 15 August.
• The Manager of your Finance Department confirmed the booking on 15 August.

Both of these examples are correct because the finance department might be called the Finance Department. Read more about nouns that bridge the gap between common nouns and proper nouns (see Issue 1). Look at these examples:

• The director will cast the final vote.
• The Director will cast the final vote.
• The Director will cast the final Vote.
(The word "director" could be considered a common noun or a proper noun. The word "vote" can't. It must be lowercase.)

Printable Test