SHSAT English Language Arts Quiz: Capitalization Rules
20 questions · exam conditions
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Capitalization RulesQuestion 1 of 20

(1) Our museum trip focused on the Middle Ages in Europe. (2) We saw armor from the period and a map of medieval trade routes. (3) Later, a guide explained how the industrial revolution changed life in British cities. (4) At the end of the tour, we visited an exhibit on the Renaissance.

Which numbered sentence has a capitalization error?

Sentence 1
Sentence 2
Sentence 3
Sentence 4
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SHSAT English Language Arts Quiz

SHSAT English Language Arts Quiz: Capitalization Rules

Practice Capitalization Rules in SHSAT English Language Arts with focused quiz questions that help you check what you know, review explanations, and build confidence with test-style prompts.

What this quiz covers

This quiz focuses on Capitalization Rules, giving you a quick way to practice the rules, question types, and explanations that matter most for SHSAT English Language Arts.

How to use this quiz

Try each quiz question before looking at the correct answer. Use the explanations to review missed ideas, then come back to similar questions until the pattern feels familiar.

All questions

Question 1

(1) Our museum trip focused on the Middle Ages in Europe. (2) We saw armor from the period and a map of medieval trade routes. (3) Later, a guide explained how the industrial revolution changed life in British cities. (4) At the end of the tour, we visited an exhibit on the Renaissance.

Which numbered sentence has a capitalization error?

  1. Sentence 1
  2. Sentence 2
  3. Sentence 3 (correct answer)
  4. Sentence 4
Explanation: This question asks you to find the sentence that capitalizes a historical period incorrectly. Names of specific historical periods and events are capitalized, but general descriptive words about history are not. Sentence 3 contains the error. In "the industrial revolution", the phrase names a specific historical period, so it should be capitalized: the Industrial Revolution. The proper adjective "British" in the same sentence is correctly capitalized. Looking at the incorrect options: Sentence 1 is correct because "the Middle Ages" is the name of a specific period. Sentence 2 is correct because "the period" is a general noun and "medieval" is a descriptive adjective, so both stay lowercase even though they refer to the Middle Ages. Sentence 4 is correct because "the Renaissance" names a specific historical period. The correct answer is C because "industrial revolution" is the name of a particular period and must be capitalized. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions about history, capitalize the official name of a period or event, but keep general words such as period, era, or describing adjectives lowercase.

Question 2

Which sentence follows the rules of capitalization?

  1. During the Great Depression, many families in the midwest moved west to find work.
  2. In her Algebra I class, Ms. Ruiz explained how ancient Egyptians used Geometry.
  3. Our English teacher assigned a memoir about the South during World War II. (correct answer)
  4. For his Spanish project, Leo interviewed his Grandmother about Puerto Rico.
Explanation: This question asks you to find the one sentence with no capitalization errors. Each other sentence has a single mistake in a different spot, so every word must be checked. Choice C is correct. "English" names a language, so it is capitalized even as a class name. "the South" names a region, and "World War II" names a specific historical event, so all are capitalized, while "teacher" and "memoir" are common nouns. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A lowercases "the midwest", but it names a region of the country and should be capitalized; the direction "moved west" is correctly lowercase. Choice B capitalizes "Geometry", but here it names a general subject, not a course title like "Algebra I", so it should be lowercase. Choice D capitalizes "his Grandmother", but a family word after a possessive is a common noun and should be lowercase. The correct answer is C because every proper noun in it is capitalized and every common noun is lowercase. Strategy tip: On SHSAT questions with four full sentences, check each choice for regions, courses, and family words separately, and eliminate a sentence the moment you find one clear error.

Question 3

Our class read the essay "Why the Lighthouse is Built on an Island," which won a statewide writing prize.

Which word in the essay title should be capitalized?

  1. the
  2. is (correct answer)
  3. on
  4. an
Explanation: This question asks you to apply title capitalization rules to short words. In a title, short articles, conjunctions, and prepositions in the middle stay lowercase, but every verb is capitalized, however short it is. Choice B is correct. In "Why the Lighthouse is Built on an Island," the word is is a verb, and verbs are important words in a title, so it should be capitalized: Is. Its short length does not make it a minor word. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A is wrong because "the" is an article in the middle of the title, so it stays lowercase. Choice C is wrong because "on" is a short preposition in the middle of the title, so it stays lowercase. Choice D is wrong because "an" is an article that is neither the first nor the last word, so it also stays lowercase. The correct answer is B because "is" is a verb, and verbs are capitalized in titles no matter how short they are. Strategy tip: On SHSAT title questions, do not judge a word by its length; identify its part of speech, and capitalize every noun, verb, adjective, and adverb, even two-letter ones.

Question 4

We kayaked down the Hudson River for an hour, but the River grew choppy near the George Washington Bridge, so we paddled east toward Fort Lee.

Which part of the sentence contains a capitalization error?

  1. the River (correct answer)
  2. Hudson River
  3. east
  4. George Washington Bridge
Explanation: This question asks you to decide whether each geographic word is part of a proper name or a general word, and whether a direction is a region or a way of moving. Choice A is correct. In "the River grew choppy", the word river refers back to the Hudson River but is not used with its name, so it is a common noun and should be lowercase: the river. Once the name is dropped, the general word loses its capital. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice B is correctly capitalized because "Hudson River" is the full name of a specific river, so both words are part of the proper noun. Choice C is correctly lowercase because "paddled east" describes a direction of travel, not a region. Choice D is correctly capitalized because "the George Washington Bridge" is the name of a specific bridge. The correct answer is A because "River" in the second clause is a general word used without the name, so it should not be capitalized. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions, a word such as river, lake, or bridge is capitalized only when it sits next to the specific name; when the sentence refers back to the place with just the general word, use lowercase.

Question 5

Although Priya has always loved Chemistry, she signed up for Algebra II and a French cooking class this fall.

Which change should be made to correct the capitalization in this sentence?

  1. Change "Algebra II" to "algebra II"
  2. Change "French cooking" to "french cooking"
  3. Change "fall" to "Fall"
  4. Change "Chemistry" to "chemistry" (correct answer)
Explanation: This question asks you to find the one word that breaks a capitalization rule for school subjects, courses, languages, or seasons. The word "Chemistry" must change. In "has always loved Chemistry", the word names a general subject that Priya enjoys, not a specific course, so it should be lowercase: loved chemistry. Subjects are capitalized only when they are languages or part of a specific course title. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A is wrong because "Algebra II" is the name of a specific numbered course, so it is capitalized. Choice B is wrong because "French" comes from the name of a language and a nationality, so it is always capitalized, even when it describes a cooking class. Choice C is wrong because seasons such as "fall" are common nouns and stay lowercase. The correct answer is D because "Chemistry" names a general field of study rather than a course title, so it should not be capitalized. Strategy tip: On SHSAT questions about school subjects, capitalize a subject only if it is a language or has a course number or official title attached; otherwise treat it like any common noun.

Question 6

Which sentence about the cousin's career is capitalized correctly?

  1. After college, my cousin joined the National Park Service, and the agency sent her to Utah. (correct answer)
  2. Last summer, she led a hiking tour for a Senator and his family from Ohio.
  3. In college, she took environmental science 110 and a summer course in botany.
  4. Her new report describes the trails that workers built in the park during the great depression.
Explanation: This question asks you to find the only sentence in which every proper noun is capitalized and every common noun is lowercase. Choice A is correct. In "joined the National Park Service", every main word of the organization's official name is capitalized. In "the agency sent her to Utah", agency is a general word that refers back to that organization, so it stays lowercase. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice B has an error in "a Senator", because a title used without a person's name is a common noun and should be lowercase. Choice C has an error in "environmental science 110", because a numbered course is the name of a specific class and should be capitalized, even though "botany" is correctly lowercase as a subject. Choice D has an error in "the great depression", because a named historical period is a proper noun, even though "the park" is correctly lowercase. The correct answer is A because the organization's name is capitalized while the general word "agency" is correctly lowercase. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions, ask of each word whether it names one specific thing or a general kind of thing, and remember that an error can be a missing capital as well as an extra one.

Question 7

In English class, we read a short story titled "the night the river was waiting for," which describes a flood in a small town.

Which choice correctly capitalizes the title of the short story in the sentence?

  1. The Night the River Was Waiting For (correct answer)
  2. The Night the River was Waiting For
  3. The Night The River Was Waiting For
  4. The Night the River Was Waiting for
Explanation: This question asks you to apply the rules for capitalizing the title of a work: capitalize the first and last words and all important words, but keep short articles, conjunctions, and prepositions lowercase in the middle. Choice A is correct. In "The Night the River Was Waiting For", the first word is capitalized, the article "the" in the middle stays lowercase, the short verb "Was" is capitalized because verbs are important words no matter how short, and the final word "For" is capitalized because it is the last word. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice B lowercases "was", but a verb is always capitalized in a title, even a short one. Choice C capitalizes the second "The", but an article in the middle of a title stays lowercase. Choice D lowercases the final "for", but the last word of a title is always capitalized. The correct answer is A because it capitalizes the first word, the last word, and the short verb while keeping the middle article lowercase. Strategy tip: On SHSAT title questions, sort every short word by its job: verbs like is and was are capitalized, middle articles and short prepositions are not, and the first and last words always are.

Question 8

Which of the following sentences uses capitalization correctly?

  1. Marisol packed her Nike Sneakers and a wool blanket for the trip to the Canadian Rockies.
  2. On the long drive west, Marisol read Songs of the Open Trail aloud to her uncle. (correct answer)
  3. Marisol signed up for Geology 101 this fall, and her Mom chose a course in biology.
  4. The family plans to hike in Grand Canyon National Park and explore the Southwest next Spring.
Explanation: This question asks you to find the only sentence in which every word follows the rules for capitalizing proper nouns, titles, and common nouns. Choice B is correct. In "On the long drive west", west is a direction of travel and stays lowercase. In "Songs of the Open Trail", the short words of and the are lowercase inside a title, while the main words are capitalized. In "her uncle", the family word follows a possessive, so it is lowercase. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A has an error in "Nike Sneakers", because a brand name is capitalized but the ordinary product after it is a common noun: Nike sneakers. Choice C has an error in "her Mom", because a family word after a possessive is lowercase, even though "Geology 101" is correctly capitalized as a course name. Choice D has an error in "next Spring", because seasons are lowercase, even though "the Southwest" is correctly capitalized as a region. The correct answer is B because its direction, title, and family word are all capitalized correctly. Strategy tip: On SHSAT questions that ask which sentence is correct, check every word in all four choices, since each wrong sentence hides only one error in a different place.

Question 9

(1) Every winter, my grandmother leaves Ohio and drives South for nearly two days. (2) On the way, she stops in Charleston to visit Uncle Ray, who once worked as an aide to a senator. (3) Each spring, Mom flies down to spend a week with her. (4) Grandma says that no place feels like home the way the South does.

Which sentence contains a capitalization error?

  1. Sentence 1 (correct answer)
  2. Sentence 2
  3. Sentence 3
  4. Sentence 4
Explanation: This question asks you to find the one sentence that breaks a capitalization rule, which means checking every capitalized and lowercase word against the rule it follows. Sentence 1 contains the error. In "drives South for nearly two days", the word South names the direction the grandmother travels, not a region, so it should be lowercase: drives south. The season in "Every winter" is correctly lowercase. Looking at the incorrect options: Sentence 2 is correct because "Uncle Ray" pairs a family title with a name, while "a senator" is a title used without a name and stays lowercase. Sentence 3 is correct because "Each spring" names a season, which is lowercase, and "Mom" is used in place of a name, so it is capitalized. Sentence 4 is correct because "the South" names a region where a person can feel at home, so it is a proper noun, and "Grandma" is also used as a name. The correct answer is A because "South" in sentence 1 tells which way the grandmother drives, and directions of travel are lowercase. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions, test every capitalized and every lowercase word in each sentence, because the correct sentences are often built from cases that look wrong.

Question 10

After the ceremony, the governor posed for photographs with Senator Okafor, the Mayor of Buffalo, and Principal Reyes.

Which word needs a change in capitalization?

  1. governor
  2. Senator
  3. Mayor (correct answer)
  4. Principal
Explanation: This question asks you to decide which title is capitalized incorrectly. A title is capitalized when it comes directly before a person's name, but it is lowercase when it is used without a name. The word "Mayor" must change. In "the Mayor of Buffalo", the title is not attached to a name; it follows the article "the" and describes a position, so it should read the mayor of Buffalo. Only the city name, Buffalo, stays capitalized. Looking at the incorrect options: "governor" is correctly lowercase because "the governor" names the office without a name after it. "Senator" is correctly capitalized because "Senator Okafor" places the title directly before a name. "Principal" is correctly capitalized for the same reason, since "Principal Reyes" uses the title as part of the name. The correct answer is C because "Mayor" is a title used without a person's name, so it should be lowercase. Strategy tip: On SHSAT questions about titles, look at the word right after the title: if a name follows, capitalize the title; if "of" or nothing follows, keep it lowercase.

Question 11

Which of these sentences is capitalized correctly?

  1. My mom says that Grandpa Lou spent every Summer fishing on Lake Champlain.
  2. Before dinner, Mom reminded my cousins that Aunt Bea arrives on Thanksgiving. (correct answer)
  3. When I asked Dad about the trip, he said my Grandmother would drive us to Maine.
  4. Every fall, my Dad and Uncle Pete rake the leaves behind the Elm Street church.
Explanation: This question asks you to find the only sentence with no capitalization errors. Each of the other sentences has exactly one mistake, so every word has to be checked. Choice B is correct. In "Before dinner, Mom reminded my cousins", the word Mom is used as a name, so it is capitalized. "Aunt Bea" pairs a family title with a name, and "Thanksgiving" is a holiday, so both are capitalized, while "my cousins" stays lowercase. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A capitalizes "every Summer", but seasons are lowercase. Choice C capitalizes "my Grandmother", but a family word after a possessive such as my is a common noun and should be lowercase. Choice D capitalizes "my Dad", which has the same problem; with my in front, the word is no longer used as a name. The correct answer is B because each family word, name, and holiday in it follows the rules, while the other choices each contain one error. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions, test a family word by putting a real name in its place: if a name such as Maria fits, capitalize the word; if the result would read my Maria, keep the word lowercase.

Question 12

Which sentence contains an error in capitalization?

  1. Our team drove north for six hours to reach the tournament in Vermont.
  2. The coach asked whether Professor Diaz could speak to the team in March.
  3. Every Tuesday this fall, my brother studies Japanese with a tutor from Queens.
  4. After the holidays, my Aunt and I toured the Brooklyn Museum. (correct answer)
Explanation: This question asks you to find the one sentence with a capitalization mistake. Three sentences follow the rules, so each word in each sentence has to be checked. Choice D contains the error. In "my Aunt and I", the family word aunt follows the possessive my and is not followed by a name, so it is a common noun and should be lowercase: my aunt. The museum name, "the Brooklyn Museum", is correctly capitalized. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A is correct because "drove north" describes a direction of travel, which stays lowercase. Choice B is correct because "Professor Diaz" puts the title before a name and "the team" is a common noun. Choice C is correct because "this fall" names a season, which is lowercase, while "Japanese" is a language and "Queens" is a place, so both are capitalized. The correct answer is D because "Aunt" is a family word used after my without a name, so it should be lowercase. Strategy tip: On SHSAT questions that ask for the sentence with an error, check lowercase words as carefully as capitalized ones, since correct lowercase words such as north and fall are designed to look like mistakes.

Question 13

"I feel much better today, doctor," Mr. Patel said as the Doctor checked his chart.

Which revision corrects the capitalization in this sentence?

  1. "I feel much better today, Doctor," Mr. Patel said as the Doctor checked his chart.
  2. "I feel much better today, doctor," Mr. Patel said as the doctor checked his chart.
  3. "I feel much better today, Doctor," Mr. Patel said as the doctor checked his chart. (correct answer)
  4. "I feel much better today, Doctor," mr. Patel said as the doctor checked his chart.
Explanation: This question asks you to fix how a title is capitalized when it is used to speak directly to someone and when it is used as an ordinary noun. Choice C is correct. In "today, Doctor", Mr. Patel is speaking directly to the doctor, and a title used in direct address takes the place of a name, so it is capitalized. In "the doctor checked his chart", the word follows the article the and simply names a profession, so it is lowercase. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A fixes the direct address but keeps "the Doctor checked", where the title is used as a common noun and should be lowercase. Choice B fixes the second title but leaves "today, doctor", where the title is used in direct address and should be capitalized. Choice D fixes both titles but changes "Mr. Patel" to "mr. Patel", and a courtesy title before a name is always capitalized. The correct answer is C because it capitalizes the title used in direct address and lowercases the title used as a common noun after the. Strategy tip: On SHSAT revision questions, compare the choices word by word and list each difference, then judge each difference separately; a choice that fixes two problems can still add a new one.

Question 14

Ever since watching the Winter Olympics, my sister has practiced every Winter at a rink near Lake Placid.

Which edit corrects the capitalization error in the sentence?

  1. Change "Winter Olympics" to "winter Olympics"
  2. Change "Winter at" to "winter at" (correct answer)
  3. Change "rink" to "Rink"
  4. Change "Lake Placid" to "Lake placid"
Explanation: This question asks you to decide when a season word is capitalized. A season is normally lowercase, but it is capitalized when it is part of the name of a specific event. Choice B is correct. In "every Winter at a rink", the word winter names a time of year, so it is a common noun and should be lowercase: every winter. Nothing about this use makes it part of a proper name. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A is wrong because "the Winter Olympics" is the name of a specific event, so Winter is part of the proper noun and stays capitalized. Choice C is wrong because "a rink" is a general noun, not the name of a particular place. Choice D is wrong because "Lake Placid" is the name of a specific place, so both words are capitalized. The correct answer is B because the second "Winter" refers only to the season, and seasons are lowercase unless they are part of a name. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions, when the same word appears twice, check each use separately; one can be part of a proper name while the other is an ordinary common noun.

Question 15

(1) Last summer, my family toured several cities in the northeast. (2) In Boston, we walked the Freedom Trail and visited a museum about the American Revolution.

In sentence 1, which word group contains a word that should be capitalized?

  1. Last summer
  2. my family
  3. several cities
  4. the northeast (correct answer)
Explanation: This question asks you to find a word that names a specific place or region but has been left lowercase. Choice D is correct. In "the northeast", the word names a particular region of the country that the family toured, not a direction of travel, so it is a proper noun and should be capitalized: the Northeast. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice A is wrong because "Last summer" contains a season, and seasons are lowercase; Last is capitalized only because it begins the sentence. Choice B is wrong because "my family" is a general phrase with no proper noun in it. Choice C is wrong because "several cities" refers to cities in general without naming any of them. The correct answer is D because "northeast" names a region where the cities are located and must be capitalized. Strategy tip: On SHSAT capitalization questions, a direction word used as a place you can be in names a region and is capitalized, while a direction that tells which way someone moves stays lowercase; the word "the" in front of it does not decide it alone.

Question 16

(1) My Aunt is coming to visit from Ohio this weekend. (2) I told my mom that we should prepare the guest room. (3) Dad said he would help after he gets back from the store. (4) My cousin, Sarah, is also excited for the visit.

Which sentence contains a capitalization error?

  1. Sentence 2
  2. Sentence 1 (correct answer)
  3. Sentence 3
  4. Sentence 4
Explanation: Capitalization questions test your knowledge of when to use capital letters versus lowercase letters. The key rule here is that family relationship words like "aunt," "uncle," "mom," and "dad" are only capitalized when they're used as proper nouns or in place of a person's name. Looking at sentence 1, "My Aunt is coming to visit from Ohio this weekend," the word "aunt" should be lowercase because it follows the possessive pronoun "my." When you use words like "my," "his," "her," or "our" before family terms, those family terms become common nouns and should be lowercase. You would write "my aunt" just like you'd write "my teacher" or "my friend." Let's examine why the other options are correct as written. Choice (A) sentence 2 properly uses lowercase "mom" after "my." Choice (C) sentence 3 correctly capitalizes "Dad" because it's used without a possessive pronoun—it's functioning as a proper noun, like a name. Choice (D) sentence 4 has no capitalization errors; "cousin" is lowercase because it follows "my," while "Sarah" is correctly capitalized as a proper name. Remember this pattern: if you can substitute the family term with the person's actual name and it sounds natural, then capitalize it. "Dad said he would help" works because you could say "John said he would help." But "My Dad is coming" sounds awkward compared to "My John is coming"—that's your clue to use lowercase "dad."

Question 17

We learned that president Franklin D. Roosevelt led the country during the Great Depression and that he was assisted by many advisors.

Which revision corrects the capitalization error in the sentence?

  1. We learned that President Franklin D. Roosevelt led the country during the Great Depression... (correct answer)
  2. We learned that president Franklin D. Roosevelt led the country during the great depression...
  3. We learned that President Franklin D. Roosevelt led the Country during the great depression...
  4. We learned that president Franklin D. Roosevelt led the country during the great Depression...
Explanation: This question tests your knowledge of capitalization rules, specifically when to capitalize titles and proper nouns versus common nouns. The correct answer is A because it properly capitalizes "President" when it appears before Franklin D. Roosevelt's name as his official title. When a title directly precedes a person's name, it functions as part of their proper name and should be capitalized. "Great Depression" is also correctly capitalized because it's the proper name of a specific historical period. Let's examine why the other options are incorrect. Option B fails to capitalize "President" before Roosevelt's name and incorrectly lowercases both words in "Great Depression." Option C makes two errors: it unnecessarily capitalizes "Country" (which is just a common noun here, not referring to a specific nation's proper name) and lowercases "great depression." Option D capitalizes only "Depression" while leaving "great" lowercase, creating an inconsistent and incorrect treatment of this proper noun, and it still fails to capitalize the title "President." The key distinction here is understanding when words function as proper nouns (specific names of people, places, events, or titles) versus common nouns (general categories of things). Titles like "President" are capitalized when they directly precede a name, and historical periods like the "Great Depression" are always capitalized as proper nouns. Remember this pattern: titles before names get capitalized, and historical events or periods are treated as proper nouns requiring full capitalization of all significant words.

Question 18

My favorite time of year is the Winter because it includes holidays like Christmas and New Year's day.

Which revision corrects the capitalization errors in the sentence?

  1. My favorite time of year is the Winter because it includes holidays like christmas and new year's day.
  2. My favorite time of year is the winter because it includes holidays like Christmas and New year's day.
  3. My favorite time of year is the winter because it includes holidays like Christmas and New Year's Day. (correct answer)
  4. My favorite time of year is the Winter because it includes holidays like christmas and New Year's Day.
Explanation: Capitalization questions test your knowledge of when to use uppercase letters for specific types of words. You need to distinguish between common nouns (lowercase) and proper nouns (uppercase), while also understanding seasonal and holiday capitalization rules. The correct answer is C because it follows proper capitalization rules consistently. "Winter" should be lowercase because seasons are common nouns, not proper nouns. "Christmas" is correctly capitalized as it's a specific holiday name (proper noun). "New Year's Day" is properly capitalized because it's the official name of a specific holiday, and "Day" is part of the complete proper noun. Choice A incorrectly keeps "Winter" capitalized while making "christmas" and "new year's day" lowercase. This gets the seasonal rule right but fails with the holidays, which are proper nouns requiring capitalization. Choice B correctly lowercases "winter" and capitalizes "Christmas," but only capitalizes "New" in "New year's day." Since "New Year's Day" is the complete name of the holiday, all major words should be capitalized. Choice D makes the same seasonal error as choice A by capitalizing "Winter," and compounds this by failing to capitalize "christmas" while correctly handling "New Year's Day." Remember this pattern: seasons (spring, summer, fall, winter) are common nouns and stay lowercase unless they begin a sentence. However, specific holidays are always proper nouns requiring capitalization. When holiday names contain multiple words like "New Year's Day," capitalize all the major words in the complete name.

Question 19

In class, we read the famous short story 'The Gift Of The Magi' by O. Henry.

Which revision corrects the capitalization error in the title?

  1. 'The Gift of the Magi' (correct answer)
  2. 'the gift of the magi'
  3. 'The gift of the Magi'
  4. 'The Gift Of the Magi'
Explanation: When you encounter questions about title capitalization, you need to apply the standard rules for capitalizing titles in English. The key principle is that you capitalize the first and last words of a title, plus all major words in between, while leaving minor words (like articles, short prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions) in lowercase. Let's examine "The Gift of the Magi" using these rules. "The" is capitalized because it's the first word. "Gift" is a major word (noun), so it gets capitalized. "Of" is a short preposition, so it stays lowercase. "The" in the middle is an article, so it remains lowercase. "Magi" is capitalized because it's both a major word (noun) and the final word of the title. Looking at the incorrect options: Choice B ('the gift of the magi') fails to capitalize any words, including the essential first and last words. Choice C ('The gift of the Magi') capitalizes the first and last words correctly but leaves "gift" lowercase, even though it's a major word that should be capitalized. Choice D ('The Gift Of the Magi') incorrectly capitalizes "Of," treating the preposition as if it were a major word. Choice A ('The Gift of the Magi') correctly applies all the capitalization rules, making it the right answer. Remember this pattern for title capitalization questions: always capitalize the first and last words, then capitalize everything in between except articles (a, an, the), short prepositions (of, in, on, etc.), and coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or). This rule appears frequently on standardized tests.

Question 20

As the team ran onto the field, the captain yelled, "let's give it everything we've got!"

Which revision corrects the capitalization error?

  1. As the team ran onto the field, the Captain yelled, "let's give it everything we've got!"
  2. As the Team ran onto the field, the captain yelled, "Let's give it everything we've got!"
  3. As the team ran onto the field, the Captain yelled, "Let's give it everything we've got!"
  4. As the team ran onto the field, the captain yelled, "Let's give it everything we've got!" (correct answer)
Explanation: This question tests your understanding of capitalization rules, specifically for quoted dialogue and job titles. When you encounter capitalization questions, focus on two key areas: the first word of quoted speech and whether titles should be capitalized based on how they're used. The correct answer is D because it follows proper capitalization rules. The word "Let's" must be capitalized because it begins a direct quotation - the first word of any quoted speech is always capitalized, regardless of where the quote falls in the sentence. The word "captain" should remain lowercase because it's used as a common noun describing the person's role, not as part of their proper name. Choice A incorrectly capitalizes "Captain" while leaving "let's" lowercase. Job titles like "captain" are only capitalized when they directly precede a person's name (like "Captain Smith") or when used as a form of direct address. Here, it simply describes what the person is. Choice B capitalizes "Team" incorrectly - common nouns like "team" don't need capitalization unless they're part of a proper noun. While it correctly capitalizes "Let's," the "Team" error makes this wrong. Choice C combines both errors from A and B: it unnecessarily capitalizes both "Captain" and "Team" while correctly capitalizing "Let's." Remember this pattern: always capitalize the first word of quoted dialogue, but be selective with titles - they're only capitalized when they're part of someone's actual name or used in direct address, not when they're simply describing someone's job or role.