I hope you remember the grammar and punctuation guides we learned in our childhood.
Well, if you have forgotten the capitalization rule for weeks, months, or holidays, I have got you! Sometimes, the rules can be confusing with specific terms like days of the week.
In the beginning, I had so many questions, like: Should I capitalize the days of the week in the middle of a sentence? What about at the end of the sentence?
Should I capitalize every name of the week or just some specific ones? All these questions are important for language rules and writing conventions.
In this guide, I will tell you about when to capitalize days of the week, exploring the rules, exceptions, and alternative guidelines.
I will also shed some light on Months of the year capitalization and holidays capitalization like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Let’s dive IN!!!
Why Do You Capitalize the Days of the Week?
Let’s talk about an important part of language conventions: the rules for capitalization of the days of the week:
Understanding Proper Nouns
Understanding capitalization for specific terms is important. The logic behind capitalizing the days of the week is pretty simple.
All those days, like Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and the rest, are proper nouns. And just like your name or the name of a place, they should be written in capital letters.
Emphasis on Uniqueness
For example, Monday is a proper noun, a particular day of the week. So, when I write, I use the day of the week as a proper noun to emphasize that specific day.
Specific events also need to be capitalized.
Compared with Proper Nouns
Let’s talk about Proper nouns vs. common nouns and capitalization. In a sentence like “Max is leaving on Sunday,” you can see that Max is a proper noun because it is a person’s name.
And just like nobody can replace Max with anything else, the same goes for Sunday. You cannot change that. Sunday is the name of a specific period or day, just like Max is the name of a particular person.
Uniqueness
Proper nouns like Max or Sunday are names of things that are unchangeable. A proper noun is like a stamp of uniqueness that cannot change.
So, when I capitalize the days of the week, I’m giving them the respect they deserve as names of these unchangeable periods. In fact, you can also do consistent capitalization for clarity and style.
How To Write The Days Of The Week With Capitalized?
While writing about the days of the week, you might find yourself navigating through so many rules.
“Do you need to capitalize the days of the week?” Well, yes, you need to do that. Let me tell you some basic rules of capitalization:
The First Letter of a Sentence
First, I always remember that a sentence’s starting letter or character is always capitalized. I ensure that the first letter of the sentence is in uppercase, maintaining the rules.
Proper Nouns: The Name Game
Proper nouns play a significant role in capitalization. Whenever there’s a proper noun in my sentence, I make sure it stands out with a capital letter.
Whether it’s Max, Tommy, or any other unique name, they must all be capitalized. The names of the days of the week are also a proper noun.
Days, Months, and Seasons: Proper Noun Essentials
Days, months, and seasons might seem common, but they are proper nouns. So, when I talk about my birthday in April, you bet that April gets its capital letter.
Following a Colon
After a colon, there is often a new sentence, and I ensure the first letter following the colon gets its capital glory.
Quoted Sentences
When I use quotes, I remember that the first non-space character of the quoted sentence deserves capitalization.
It’s a way of respecting the quoted words. For example, “Max told Tommy, “You play basketball very well”.
First-Person Pronoun: Capital “I”
Whenever I encounter the first-person pronoun “I” in my writing, I capitalize it.
Regardless of where it appears in the sentence, that ‘I’ gets its uppercase recognition. For instance, “How can I go to the market now?”
Trademark Reminder: Brands Deserve Capitalization
Trademark names are treated as proper nouns, so the first letter of these names gets the capitalization treatment.
For instance, “Nike is the best running show in America.”
If you stick to these simple rules, they can help you in avoiding common capitalization mistakes.
There are several tools available, such as grammar checkers and capitalization support, that provide different grammar styles and capitalization variations.
Examples Of Days Of the Week Used In A Sentence
Let’s take a look at some of the sentences using days of the week in a sentence:
- Every Monday and Wednesday, I attend yoga classes to stay fit.
- We have a team meeting scheduled for Tuesday morning
- On Fridays, the office usually has a casual dress code.
- My favorite TV show airs on Thursdays and Sundays.
- Planning a road trip on Saturday and Sunday is a great idea.
These examples showcase the correct use of days of the week in sentences, adhering to the capitalization rules for days, months, weeks, and holidays.
What About Capitalizing The Word “Day”?
When capitalizing words, the little details can make a big difference. For example, take the word “day.” This simple term can change its status in a sentence, and here’s why it matters.
Example: “The boy will arrive any day.” Notice how “boy” and “day” are in lowercase? That’s because, in this context, they are just common nouns.
The boy could show up any day of the week – Tuesday or Wednesday, you name it. And, well, the boy? He’s just any boy, not a specific one like Max.
Proper nouns, like Dubai (a place), Monday (a day of the week), or Tom (a person’s name), are the heavyweights. They are the things that stay the same, no matter what.
When they are used in a sentence, the sentence gets a spotlight, emphasizing that this isn’t just any place, day, or person.
Identifying proper nouns in a sentence is easy. Every sentence with a proper noun has a certain kind of authority.
Conclusion
Hopefully, this blog on “Capitalization rules for days, months, weeks, holidays” clearly indicated how to capitalize the days of the weeks, months, and other proper nouns.
One rule for days of the week capitalization is that no matter where they appear in a sentence, those days have to start with a capital letter.
You must also learn about capitalization in informal vs. formal writing. Grammar resources like style guides, websites, and tools can help you understand these rules in detail.
I used to remember these days by associating them with months and holidays. By treating them like proper nouns and capitalizing them just as we do with months and holidays, I ensure that the days of the week are always portrayed correctly in my writing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Wednesday a proper noun?
Yes, “Wednesday” is a proper noun, as it represents a specific day of the week. All the names of the days of the week are proper nouns: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
Is Monday a common noun or a proper noun?
Monday is a specific day of the week with a name, so it is a proper noun. In English, all days of the week are proper nouns, denoted by using a capital first letter when written. Monday is a proper noun because it represents a specific day of the week.
Does it mean that the days of the week will always be capitalized?
Yes, the days of the week, months, and holidays should always be capitalized, as these are proper nouns. But the names of the seasons are not capitalized. The name of a season is only capitalized if they are being used as the name of a human being.
Do you capitalize spring, summer, fall, or winter?
Seasons like spring, summer, fall, and winter are not capitalized unless they form part of a proper noun or appear at the beginning of a sentence. For instance, “I love the colors of autumn” and “Winters are all gray and white.”
Are weekdays capitalized in AP style?
Yes, weekdays are capitalized in AP style. This means that days like Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and so on are written with an initial capital letter.
How do you capitalize Labor Day and Fourth of July?
Both Labor Day and Fourth of July are capitalized as they refer to specific holidays. However, the associated seasons are not capitalized unless integral to a particular reference or title.
Should months be capitalized when abbreviated?
Months are capitalized when abbreviated, such as Jan., Feb., Mar., etc. This maintains consistency in writing conventions.
Is “back to school” capitalized?
“Back to school” is generally not capitalized unless it is at the beginning of a sentence or forms part of a title, like “Back to School Shopping Tips.”
Do you capitalize Easter Sunday?
Easter Sunday is capitalized as it denotes a specific day within the Easter holiday. This capitalization emphasizes its significance.