When you craft the perfect title, every word counts, including the small ones like ‘between.’ The capitalization of words in titles can trip up even the best writers, but fear not. Different style guides have their own rules for title capitalization, and if you’re looking to master the art, knowing whether to capitalize ‘between’ can make a significant difference. Dive into the heart of Chicago, MLA, APA, and AP styles to gain clarity and ensure your titles shine with polished grammar.
In title capitalization for multiple style guides like Chicago, MLA, APA, and AP, the word ‘between’ isn’t usually capitalized. It’s classified as a preposition, and style guides typically advise lowercase for prepositions. However, AP style dictates prepositions with more than three characters should be capitalized, making ‘Between’ correct.
When you’re crafting a title, every word counts, including ‘between’. The rule of thumb is to capitalize main words in titles, which typically includes nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. But what about words like ‘between’?
Understand Title Capitalization Rules
Capitalizing titles can be tricky, but there’s a simple way to get it right. In most title capitalization style guides, such as Chicago, MLA, and APA, the word ‘between’ is considered a preposition. Rules for these styles state that prepositions of four or more letters should be capitalized in titles. Since ‘between’ has seven letters, it’s usually given a capital ‘B’.
However, the AP style is a bit different. It suggests that you capitalize prepositions of four letters or more, which would still mean ‘between’ gets capitalized. This is useful because whether you’re following Chicago, MLA, APA, or AP guidelines, ‘between’ should be capitalized in a title.
Examples for Clarity
Let’s look at examples to put this rule into context:
- Chicago/MLA/APA: The Secret Lies Between the Pages
- AP: Navigating Between Star Systems
Notice in both examples, ‘Between’ starts with a capital ‘B’. It doesn’t matter where ‘between’ appears in the title; it should be capitalized as it meets the criteria in all style guides mentioned.
However, always remember to check the specific style guide when writing a title, as rules can change or may have exceptions. Keep your titles polished and professional by following these simple guidelines.
Conclusion
In conclusion, when you’re deciding whether to capitalize the word ‘between’ in a title, think about the style guide you are following. For Chicago, MLA, APA, and AP, the rule is simple: if ‘between’ is part of a title or a heading, treat it as you would other words that are not articles, prepositions, or conjunctions with fewer than four letters. Since ‘between’ has seven characters, you capitalize it in titles according to each of these styles. Remember this easy rule, and you’ll have no trouble with titles in your essays, articles, or stories. Thanks for reading, and keep writing clearly and confidently!
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