TEAS® English Study Guide
Capitalization and Spelling
Capitalization.The rules of capitalization are finite and worth memorizing.
Always capitalize:
- The first word of a sentence and the pronoun I.
- Proper nouns: Specific names of people, places, and things — Maria, New York, Ford.
- Days, months, and holidays: Monday, August, Thanksgiving — but not seasons (summer stays lowercase).
- Languages and nationalities: Spanish, Canadian.
- A title before a name: Aunt Maria, Doctor Lee, President Adams — but lowercase when it stands alone, without a name to follow it (my aunt, the doctor).
- Important words in a title: Titles of books, movies, articles, or other media.
Spelling. Much of the spelling tested on the TEAS is really about choosing the right word from a set of soundalikes.
Commonly confused words:
- their (possessive) / there (place) / they’re (they are)
- your (possessive) / you’re (you are)
- its (possessive) / it’s (it is)
- to (movement or direction) / too (also, excessively) / two (2)
- than (comparison) / then (time)
- affect (usually a verb, to influence) / effect (usually a noun, a result)
- accept (to receive) / except (other than)
- whose (possessive) / who’s (who is)
Putting it in practice:
For capitalization, ask whether the word is a specific name, a day/month/holiday, or the start of a sentence — if not, it’s usually lowercase. For commonly confused words, plug in the definition: if "it is" fits, use it’s; if it means “a result,” use effect.
Example:
Their going to bring they’re books over there.
All three soundalikes are used, but two are in the wrong place. Corrected: They’re (they are) going to bring their (possessive) books over there (place).