Editor's Corner

Today is the final e-mail about capitalization—at least for now. I’m returning to Grammar Girl’s write-up/podcast about capitalization in the corporate world. The last section is called “Pride Capitals and Ideal Forms.”

One mistake business writers often make is capitalizing words simply for emphasis or to augment their importance. [KC – This is particularly prevalent in some of our more technical documentation.] Such errant capitalization happens frequently in press releases and other promotional materials. Hyperbole is no stranger in that realm. Nevertheless, it does not make your pork rinds crunchier and tastier if you capitalize the words “Pork” and “Rinds.”

Murray Munn commented on the “Pork Rind” kind of capitalization on the Grammar Girl Facebook page. He calls them “pride capitals” and speculates that “What we admire, we capitalize.” For example, he says he often sees librarians write “library” with a capital L. [KC – I think “pride capitals” is a fantastic term. When you’re writing, consider whether
the topic is a common term or an actual product with a trademark or copyright. For example, “Blade Network Technologies^®” as opposed to “the network technology used at this company.”]

Murray isn’t far from the truth because sometimes it actually is okay to capitalize words we admire. In its section on Platonic words, the Chicago Manual of Style offers this:

“Words for transcendent ideas in the Platonic sense, especially when used in a religious context, are often capitalized. Good; Beauty; Truth; the One.”

So here’s the Quick and Dirty Tip on random or vanity capitalization: don’t.

Save uppercase for conventional uses such as a proper name or one of Plato’s lofty ideals.

When in doubt, look up a word to see whether its meaning varies depending on capitalization.

I hope you have a great holiday weekend!

Kara Church

Senior Technical Editor