Capital and Lowercase Letters in Titles (Title Case)

The Quick Answer
Titles should be written in title case. This means only using capital letters for the principal words. Articles, conjunctions, and prepositions do not get capital letters unless they start the title. For example:
  • The Last of the Mohicans

Using Capital Letters and Lowercase Letters in Titles (Title Case)

When writing a name or a title, it is a common convention to only use capital letters to start the principal words. This is called title case.

The principal words in a title are all the words which are not: In title case, articles, conjunctions, and prepositions are written with a lowercase letter unless they start the title.

Examples of Title Case

Here are some examples of titles in title case:
  • Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
    • (In this example, the conjunction and and the article the are written with lowercase letters.)
  • Newcastle upon Tyne
    • (Here, the preposition upon is written with a lowercase letter.)
  • Brighton on Sea
    • (Here, the preposition on is written with a lowercase letter.)
  • The Last of the Mohicans
    • (Here, the preposition of and the article the are written with lowercase letters. The article The starting the title is given a capital letter.)
Although title case looks neat, not everybody uses it. Many businesses use capital letters for all the words in their titles. You should copy the official versions if you know them.

See Also

Capital letters in advertisements Capital letters and the points of the compass Using capital letters with proper and common nouns Capital letters with the four seasons Capital letters start sentences Test on using capital letters