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Is "From" Capitalized in a Title?

Andy Feliciotti·2 min read

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It depends on the style guide. "From" is a four-letter preposition, which puts it right on the line. AP, APA, and AMA capitalize prepositions of four or more letters, so they write "From." Chicago and MLA lowercase all prepositions, and Bluebook lowercases those of four letters or fewer, so those three keep "from" lowercase mid-title.

"From" by Style Guide

Style guide"From" mid-titleWhy
APCapitalizePrepositions of four or more letters are capitalized
APACapitalizeWords of four or more letters are capitalized
ChicagoLowercasePrepositions are lowercase at any length
MLALowercasePrepositions are lowercase at any length
AMACapitalizeOnly prepositions of three or fewer letters stay lowercase
BluebookLowercasePrepositions of four or fewer letters stay lowercase

The Same Headline in Four Styles

Style"lessons from a failed launch"
APLessons From a Failed Launch
APALessons From a Failed Launch
ChicagoLessons from a Failed Launch
MLALessons from a Failed Launch
Style"notes from underground"
APNotes From Underground
APANotes From Underground
ChicagoNotes from Underground
MLANotes from Underground

When "From" Is Capitalized Everywhere

  • First word: "From Here to Eternity."
  • First word of a subtitle: "Sourdough: From Starter to Loaf."
  • Last word: "Where We Come From" in AP, Chicago, and MLA.

"With", "into", and "over" are also four letters and split the guides the same way. Shorter ones like "to" and "by" are lowercase everywhere.

Real Titles With "From"

  • From Here to Eternity (James Jones): first word
  • Notes from Underground (Fyodor Dostoevsky, in English): lowercase mid-title

"From" in Sentence Case

APA reference lists, many news sites, and most UI text use sentence case instead of title case. There, only the first word and proper nouns get capitals, so "from" is lowercase unless it starts the title: "Lessons from a failed launch." Pick one of the two styles for a whole set of headings rather than mixing them.

Quick Answers

Should "from" be capitalized in a title?

In AP, APA, and AMA, yes. In Chicago, MLA, and Bluebook, no, unless it is first or last.

Is "from" capitalized in APA?

Yes. "From" has four letters, and APA capitalizes words of four letters or more.

Is "from" capitalized in Chicago style?

No. Chicago lowercases prepositions regardless of length.