Title Case Rules: How to Capitalize a Title Correctly
By Shihab Mia July 5, 2026 7 min read
Quick answer
Title case capitalizes the first word, the last word, and every major word (nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs). Keep minor words lowercase in the middle: articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet), and short prepositions (of, to, in, on, at, by, up). The one rule that never bends: always capitalize the first and last word, no matter what they are.
Title case is the capitalization style used in book titles, headlines, and headings, where most words start with a capital letter and a handful of small connector words stay lowercase. The confusion usually starts with a word like "with" or "up", because different style guides disagree on whether to capitalize it. This guide covers the exact rules, a fast lookup table, a worked example, and how AP, APA, Chicago, and MLA style differ.
What words do you capitalize in title case?
In title case you capitalize all major words plus the first and last word. Major words carry the meaning of the title, so they always get a capital letter regardless of length.
- Nouns: dog, city, freedom, algorithm
- Pronouns: he, she, it, they, who, this
- Verbs: run, is, are, was, become (yes, capitalize short verbs like "Is" and "Are")
- Adjectives: red, quick, tiny, beautiful
- Adverbs: quickly, very, never, well
A common trap is short verbs and pronouns. Words like is, are, be, it, and my are only two or three letters, so people lowercase them by habit. They are major words, so they stay capitalized. Length does not decide capitalization; the word's job in the sentence does.
What words stay lowercase in a title?
Minor words stay lowercase in title case unless they are the first or last word of the title. There are three groups to remember: articles, coordinating conjunctions, and short prepositions.
The three groups of minor words kept lowercase in title case
| Group | Words | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Articles | a, an, the | Lowercase unless first or last word |
| Coordinating conjunctions | and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet | Lowercase unless first or last word |
| Short prepositions | of, to, in, on, at, by, up | Lowercase (see style comparison below) |
Notice that for, so, and yet can be prepositions or adverbs in other contexts, but as coordinating conjunctions they are minor words. When one of these words lands at the very start or very end of your title, it gets capitalized anyway, because the first and last word rule always wins.
How do AP, APA, Chicago, and MLA style differ on prepositions?
The four major style guides split into two camps. AP and APA capitalize prepositions of four letters or more (With, From, Between), while Chicago and MLA lowercase every preposition in the middle of a title no matter how long it is.
- AP style: lowercase prepositions of three letters or fewer (of, to, in, on, off, out), and capitalize prepositions of four letters or more (With, From, Over, Into, Between). This is the style most newsrooms and online publishers use for headlines.
- APA style: uses the same three-letter cutoff as AP. Per the official APA Style guide, nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, and all words of four letters or more are major words, while conjunctions and prepositions of three letters or fewer stay lowercase.
- Chicago style: lowercase all prepositions regardless of length, so even long ones like between, through, and around stay lowercase in the middle of a title.
- MLA style: also lowercases every preposition regardless of length. The MLA Style Center explains that headline style capitalizes all words except prepositions and coordinating conjunctions, with no exception for word length.
This is why the same title can look different depending on the guide. "A Bridge over Troubled Water" is Chicago or MLA style, while "A Bridge Over Troubled Water" is AP or APA style. Neither is wrong; they just follow different rulebooks. The Chicago Manual of Style publishes its headline guidance at chicagomanualofstyle.org, which is a useful reference when you need an authoritative call. Pick one style and apply it consistently across a document.
Same title, four styles
| Word in title | AP | APA | Chicago | MLA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| of (2 letters) | lowercase | lowercase | lowercase | lowercase |
| with (4 letters) | Capitalized | Capitalized | lowercase | lowercase |
| between (7 letters) | Capitalized | Capitalized | lowercase | lowercase |
| the (article) | lowercase | lowercase | lowercase | lowercase |
Which style should you use? For news headlines and most blog titles, AP is the default, since most online style guides borrow from the Associated Press Stylebook. For academic papers in psychology, education, or the social sciences, use APA. For humanities essays (English, history, literature), MLA is the norm. For book titles, chapter headings, and general trade publishing, Chicago is the standard. If your publication or instructor has not specified a style, AP is the safest default for web content.
How to convert a title to title case, step by step
Here is a worked example using the raw phrase "the art of war and the way to win" in Chicago style.
- Capitalize the first word. "the" becomes "The" because it is the first word, even though it is an article.
- Capitalize the last word. "win" becomes "Win" because it is the last word.
- Capitalize the major words. "art", "war", and "way" are nouns, so they become "Art", "War", and "Way".
- Lowercase the middle minor words. "of" is a short preposition, "and" is a coordinating conjunction, and "the" and "to" are minor words, so they stay lowercase.
- Read the result. You get "The Art of War and the Way to Win." Every major word is capitalized, the first and last words are capitalized, and the small connectors stay lowercase.
If you would rather not do this by hand for every headline, our title case converter applies these rules instantly and lets you switch between AP, APA, Chicago, and MLA styles. It pairs well with a character counter when you are also watching headline length.
Tricky cases: hyphens, proper nouns, and acronyms
A few words break the simple major-versus-minor split, and these are where most title case errors happen. Handle them with these rules and you will rarely be wrong.
- Hyphenated words: capitalize the first part, then apply the normal major or minor test to each following part. "Well-Being" capitalizes both parts, while "State-of-the-Art" lowercases the connecting of and the.
- Proper nouns and brand names: always keep their own capitalization. "iPhone" stays "iPhone" and "eBay" stays "eBay" even at the start of a title, because that is their correct form.
- Acronyms and initialisms: leave them fully uppercase. "How to Fix a 404 Error on Your CMS" keeps "CMS" and "404" as they are.
- The word "to" in an infinitive: in a phrase like "How to Run", the to is a short function word and stays lowercase in every style covered above.
When a title contains a colon or dash, treat the first word after it as a new starting word and capitalize it, even if it is a minor word. "The Guide: A Fresh Start" capitalizes the A because it opens the subtitle. This subtitle rule is used by AP, APA, Chicago, and MLA alike, and it keeps compound titles looking deliberate.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Lowercasing short verbs. "Is", "Are", "Be", and "Was" are major words and should be capitalized, even though they are short.
- Capitalizing every word. Making every single word uppercase is not title case; it is "start case" and looks unpolished in formal writing.
- Forgetting the last word. The last word is always capitalized, even if it is a preposition like "Up" or "In".
- Mixing styles in one document. Using AP rules in one heading and Chicago in the next creates an inconsistent look. Choose one and stick with it.
- Lowercasing the first word out of habit. "The" and "A" are capitalized when they open a title, no exceptions.
Title case vs. sentence case: when to use each
Title case and sentence case solve different problems. In sentence case, you capitalize only the first word and any proper nouns, exactly like a normal sentence: "The art of war and the way to win." Many modern blogs, apps, and email subject lines prefer sentence case because it feels more natural and readable, while title case still dominates book titles, academic headings, and traditional journalism.
- Reach for title case: book and movie titles, print headlines, academic paper titles, resume section headers.
- Reach for sentence case: UI buttons and labels, email subject lines, most SEO-first blog titles, chat and social captions.
If you are deciding between them, learning the mechanics here first makes the switch easy, and you can compare this with our guide on meta description length when writing SEO titles. If you also need to turn a finished title into a clean URL, a slug generator lowercases everything and replaces spaces with hyphens for you.
Aa Try the free tool Title Case Converter Free title case converter that capitalizes headlines correctly, keeping small words like a, of, and the lowercase. Also get Sentence case, UPPERCASE and lowercase instantly.Putting the rules to work
Title case comes down to three moves: capitalize the major words, capitalize the first and last word no matter what, and lowercase the small connectors in between. The only real judgment call is prepositions, and even that is settled once you pick AP, APA, Chicago, or MLA and apply it consistently. Keep the lookup table handy, watch out for sneaky short verbs, and your headlines and titles will read clean and professional every time.