Q. I am writing a report for a U.S. government agency. My contacts want me to capitalize “federal,”
as in “Federally funded.” This looks incorrect to me. I couldn’t
find a specific rule in the Manual, though the examples I saw seem to support my opinion. I would appreciate your guidance. Thanks!
A. Chicago does not cap “federal,” since it’s not a proper
noun, but it’s common for a company to toot its own horn by capping company-related terms (like “the
University”), and the government is no different. If the agency’s house style
is to cap it, then that’s all you need to know.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Should I capitalize specific named academic degrees such as “Master’s Degree
in Built Environment” and “Bachelor of Fine Arts”? This
information will be engraved on a plaque on a prominent painting at our headquarters, so it’s essential
to get it right.
A. In the same way that we lowercase an ordinary phrase like “view from my window,”
we also lowercase “bachelor of fine arts.” But in some contexts, the same words
can be capped—for instance, in a book title (View from My Window) or at the top of a fancy diploma (Bachelor of Fine Arts). Display items like plaques support a number of treatments, none
of which is the only correct choice. You should make your decision and strive for consistency within the plaque.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Should “tea party” be capitalized? I cannot find it referenced in CMOS, but I’ve noticed that AP news stories lowercase “tea party,”
“tea partiers,” and so forth.
A. Since tea partiers have no official party (no officers, no headquarters, no letterhead), we too lowercase phrases denoting
tea parties and their proponents.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Hi, Chicago editors. Three of our editors have a question about capitalization of certain military terms: special ops, officers’ mess hall, president of the mess hall. Two of us believe they should all be lowercase—as should American embassy and/or consulate. Thanks for your help.
A. Chicago style is to lowercase all of these, although looking at CMOS 8.112, you might argue for capping Special Ops in some contexts. Likewise, American Embassy would not look odd in many documents. If you’re following Chicago and not capping the pope or the queen, however, President of the Mess Hall is going to look pretty silly.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I understand that the term Other is a philosophical term. I am editing an article where the author uses it capitalized throughout. It looks awkward. Here’s
an example: “The trope of the Other is typically associated with the arousal of negative feelings of
fear and disgust.” My question is this: could it be initially capitalized or in quotes, and then subsequently
written lowercase? What does CMS recommend?
A. In philosophical works, it’s better not to meddle unless the capping is obviously the result of inattention
or a global replacement in a phrase like “On the Other hand.” It’s
always fine to query individual cases. If you choose to edit some of them, track the changes (either on paper or electronically),
so the author can review them and make adjustments.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. We have a difference of opinion in my company about the capitalization of defined terms in policy and procedure documents.
One group would like to capitalize all defined terms, for example, “All Statements must be mailed on
the 3rd of the month.” This is similar to legal documents and would separate the Statement as a specific
item from a nondefined version of a statement. The other group feels this is distracting and does not add to comprehension.
What does the Oracle of Style say?
A. Form a committee! Chicago, you may know, is famously partial to lowercasing, but there’s no right answer,
so just hammer this out among you, put it in your house style guide, and move on.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. When an author refers to a chapter in the text, such as “You can read more about this in chapter 2,”
the word “chapter” isn’t capped, I believe, since the title
of the chapter isn’t itself “chapter 2” but something else.
What about if the author refers to an appendix whose title is “Appendix A”? Thanks
heaps.
A. Chicago prefers to lowercase the parts of a book, even if they’re titled generically, so in running
text we would refer to “appendix A.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. CMOS says that you’re supposed to capitalize after the colon when the colon introduces (1) a quotation or
(2) multiple sentences. But when sentences follow the colon how do you know if they’re sequential enough
to warrant the capital? It’s usually really hard to tell.
A. You have to use your judgment. I’m sorry if that’s not very helpful, but rules
can’t cover every instance. Don’t waste time overthinking: if it’s
that hard to determine, it probably doesn’t matter.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I doubt I will have the power to change this, but coworkers have insisted that common nouns like “incidents”
and “requests” be capitalized in all communications because they are capitalized
in the original contract. So folks are to “report Incidents or submit Requests,”
and “high-priority Incidents” must be reported a certain way. I think the capitalization
is unnecessary. Is it correct? I really just want personal and internal vindication, but I’d accept
being corrected.
A. Although common nouns should be lowercased in a term paper or newspaper article or book or any other kind of formal writing,
if people want certain words to pop in internal office memos or advertisements, capping is a way to achieve that. Legal documents
require caps for defined terms, so if you’re working in a law office, you might ask a higher-up the
reason for capitals, and then do as you’re told. (And if you grew up reading the original Winnie-the-Pooh books, you can enjoy a secret chuckle at the pomposity the capitals convey, here as there.)
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m editing a textbook that references a play. Should it be “Act 3,” “act three,” or “act 3”? A solution to this mystery would be greatly appreciated. I’ve looked at CMOS a hundred times for help with this issue.
A. Wow—a hundred times? If you can suggest how we can make CMOS 8.184 more clear, we’ll try to do better in the next edition: “Words denoting parts of long poems or acts and scenes of plays are usually lowercased, neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks . . . act 3, scene 2.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]