Are prepositions capitalized in titles?

The rules of capitalizing prepositions in titles are quite complex and often depend on the particular style guide you are following.

In general, prepositions of three or fewer letters (e.g., “in,” “to,” “for”) are not capitalized in titles unless they are the first or last word of the title (e.g., On the Banks of Plum Creek).

For longer prepositions (e.g., “through,” “with,” “between”), the rules vary based on which style guide you are using:

In APA Style, prepositions of four letters or more should be capitalized (e.g., A River Runs Through It).
In Chicago style and MLA style, all prepositions should be lowercase (e.g., A River Runs through It) unless they are the first or last word of the title (e.g., Through the Looking-Glass).

Additionally, preposition words are often capitalized in titles when they are acting as verb particles in a phrasal verb (e.g., Wake Up and Live).

QuillBot’s free Grammar Checker can help ensure you are capitalizing titles correctly.

Prepositions of time
Preposition	Used with	Examples
On	Days	The test is on Tuesday. I leave for Paris on the 15th.
At	Specific times of day and the general “night”	The show starts at 7:30 p.m. I went to bed at midnight. You shouldn’t drink coffee at night.
In	Months, years, seasons, general times of day (besides night)	Easter is in March this year. She graduated in 2022. I plan to travel in the summer. Do you wake up early in the morning?

Prepositions of time

Preposition

Used with

Examples

Days

The test is on Tuesday.

I leave for Paris on the 15th.

Specific times of day and the general “night”

The show starts at 7:30 p.m.

I went to bed at midnight.

You shouldn’t drink coffee at night.

Months, years, seasons, general times of day (besides night)

Easter is in March this year.

She graduated in 2022.

I plan to travel in the summer.

Do you wake up early in the morning?

Common prepositions
Location	above, at, below, beside, between, by, on, over, out, under
Time	after, at, before, by, during, in, on, since, until
Direction	across, around, down, into, past, through, to, toward
Other relationships	about, as, by, for, from, of, with

Common prepositions

Location

above, at, below, beside, between, by, on, over, out, under

Time

after, at, before, by, during, in, on, since, until

Direction

across, around, down, into, past, through, to, toward

Other relationships

about, as, by, for, from, of, with

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Are prepositions capitalized in titles?

Are prepositions capitalized in titles?: Parts of speech