Grammatically Correct: The writer's essential guide to punctuation ...

STYLE
In some cases, if a person or entity is considered to be of particular
significance, a title may retain its capitalization even when it is not
linked with the name. For example, members of Commonwealth
countries refer to the British monarch as the Queen. To a Londoner,
the downtown business core is the City. The Olympics are the Games
to all. To his devotees, Elvis is forever the King.
• It may sometimes be appropriate to capitalize certain descriptive
or identifying names and terms that are normally lowercase. The
decision to capitalize may be made on the basis of convention, policy,
expectations of readers or any other reason that is specific to your
circumstances. Whichever way you go, be sure you are consistent:
Don't alternate between capitalizing and lowercasing.
the post office or the Post Office
a nursing assistant or a Nursing Assistant
a black candidate or a Black candidate
western values or Western values
the board of directors or the Board of Directors
• Words that derive from names of people (real or fictional) or
places sometimes retain the capitalization of their origins, sometimes
not. The dictionary will tell you which way is correct.
bowdlerize a book
mesmerize a subject
play the saxophone
wear a pair of bloomers
eat french fries
sport a Vandyke beard
make a Faustian bargain
study Marxist ideology
wear a Norfolk jacket
eat Camembert cheese
• Trade names (names of commercial products) need to be capitalized
for legal reasons. Be particularly careful with those that are
often unthinkingly used as generic words (Dumpster, Plexiglas,
Scotch tape). A good dictionary will include trade names, so always
check if you're uncertain.
The furniture was built mostly of Masonite.
He wore a pair of old, faded Levi's.
Dinner that night was broth and Jell-0.
It was really only a Band-Aid solution.
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