Nick's Guide to Great Writing! | This page ©2000 by nicholasemiller |
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| Main topic: | Sub-topic: | Other notes on
class or type: | Level of difficulty
1 elementary
5 intermediate
9 advanced |
| Upper Case / Capitals | Proper nouns
| . | 2 - 3 |
| Explanation and discussion: |
Languages differ in the use of CAPITAL letters. In German, all nouns start in capitals, and the German pronoun for I is lower case while the pronoun for you is upper case (opposite of the case in English!) On the other hand, most Asian languages do not use capitals at all. In English, capitals are used in specific instances: - the first word of a sentence
- proper nouns, as in names
- abbreviations
- titles
- a few other special cases.
In this lesson we will look at the first two cases. Please see separate lessons on abbreviations titles and on a few other special cases.
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First words |
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- of a sentence |
Once upon a time, long, long ago... |
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- in letters (salutations, etc.) |
Dear Mr. Welch;
Best regards, |
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- in a quote |
... and God said, "Let there be light." |
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- after a colon (if a main point) |
In a manufacturing environment, there can only be one first priority: Safety! |
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- in a list |
Today, we will look at two cases: 1) First words in a sentence and 2) Proper nouns. |
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Proper nouns |
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But not common nouns |
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People |
Nick Miller, Jack Welch, Superman, Madonna |
people, boss, teacher, man, hero, singer, fictional character, etc. |
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Ethnic-like groups |
Japanese, Jews, Martians, Muscovites |
foreigners, natives, the poor, etc. |
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Places |
Florida, Hiroshima, the Czech Republic, District One, Africa, Mount Fuji, the Old Town Square in Prague, Northern Ireland, Milky Way, Meotobuchi Onsen, Cap d'Adge |
north, sun, city, state, country, ocean, onsen, cape, mountain, river, etc. |
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Companies, institutions |
General Electric, Musée du Louvre, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, American Sunbathing Association |
plastics company, art museum, space agency, club, association, etc. |
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Times, events |
Monday, Chanukah, Independence Day, St. Nick's Day |
winter, a workday, my birthday, etc. |
Note: Be careful! Remember that some nouns can be either common or proper!
- japan (a lacquer ware product)
- Japan (a country)
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- march (a fast walk)
- March (a month)
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- nick (a scratch or cut)
- Nick (my name!)
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