MLA Title Capitalization Rules

MLA 9th edition capitalises all principal words. Articles, prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions are lowercase in the middle of a title.

Where MLA Style Is Used

MLA title capitalization is the standard for Literature, Language Studies, High School, Undergraduate writing. Following the correct style guide is important when submitting work for publication, academic review, or professional presentation in these fields.

MLA Capitalization Rules

• Capitalise all principal words
• Lowercase: articles (a, an, the)
• Lowercase: prepositions (all lengths)
• Lowercase: coordinating conjunctions
• First and last word always capitalised
• Capitalise both parts of hyphenated compounds

How MLA Style Works in Practice

MLA title case is defined by the MLA Handbook, 9th edition (2021), published by the Modern Language Association. It is the standard for literature, linguistics, cultural studies, language arts, and most English courses at the high school and undergraduate level. Like APA, MLA lowercases all prepositions regardless of length — a preposition is a preposition regardless of how long it is. MLA also lowercases articles and coordinating conjunctions. The style is widely used in US high schools and colleges for papers in English and the humanities, and its title case rules are applied to both the paper title and to titles cited in the Works Cited list.

Common Edge Cases in MLA Style

• All prepositions stay lowercase regardless of length — "about," "between," "through," and "without" are all lowercase in MLA.
• "To" in infinitives stays lowercase: "How to Write," not "How To Write."
• Verbs "is," "are," "be" are always capitalized — they are verbs, not prepositions.
• First word after a colon or em dash in a title is always capitalized.
• MLA uses title case for both the paper title AND for titles in the Works Cited list (unlike APA, which uses sentence case in references).

Example: MLA Title Case

To see MLA style applied to your own title with a word-by-word explanation of every rule, use the MLA title capitalizer. You can also compare all 9 styles side by side using the same title.

How MLA Differs From APA

MLA and APA produce nearly identical title case for headings and paper titles — both lowercase all prepositions regardless of length and capitalize the same categories of major words. The practical difference shows up in reference formatting: MLA uses title case throughout the Works Cited list, while APA uses sentence case for article and book titles in the References section. If you are unsure which to use, a title capitalized in MLA will almost always be correct in APA and vice versa.

See the full comparison in the APA style guide or use the side-by-side comparison tool.

How MLA Differs From Other Styles

Every style guide makes different choices about prepositions, articles, and conjunctions. Here is how MLA compares to the other major title capitalization standards:

• APA — widely used in social sciences.
• Chicago — standard for books and publishing.
• AP — the standard for journalism and news.
• Bluebook — used in legal writing and law review.
• AMA — standard for medical and health writing.
• NY Times — used in one of the world's most read publications.
• Wikipedia — sentence case with proper nouns.
• Email — sentence case for professional communication.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is MLA title capitalization?

MLA title capitalization follows the MLA Handbook, 9th Edition. It capitalizes all principal words — nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, subordinating conjunctions — and lowercases all prepositions regardless of length, articles, and coordinating conjunctions.

When should I use MLA title case?

Use MLA title case for literature, language studies, comparative literature, and most undergraduate humanities papers. The MLA Handbook is standard in English departments at US universities and colleges.

What words are capitalized in MLA titles?

Nouns, pronouns, verbs (including "is" and "are"), adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions (although, because, when, while, since, unless) are capitalized. The first and last word are always capitalized.

What words are lowercase in MLA title case?

Articles (a, an, the), all prepositions regardless of length — including "from," "through," "between," "without," "against" — and coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet) are lowercase in the middle of an MLA title.

Are articles capitalized in MLA title case?

No. Articles (a, an, the) are lowercase in the middle of an MLA title. "A," "An," or "The" is capitalized only when it opens the title.

Are conjunctions capitalized in MLA title case?

Coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet) are lowercase. Subordinating conjunctions (because, although, while, when, since, unless) are capitalized as principal words.

Are prepositions capitalized in MLA title case?

No. MLA lowercases all prepositions regardless of their length. This includes short ones (of, in, at) and long ones (between, through, without, against, during). This is the same rule as APA and different from Chicago, which capitalizes prepositions of five or more letters.

Is the first word always capitalized in MLA titles?

Yes. The first word of an MLA title is always capitalized, whatever its part of speech.

Is the last word always capitalized in MLA titles?

Yes. The last word of an MLA title is always capitalized regardless of part of speech.

How is MLA title case different from other styles?

Like APA, MLA lowercases all prepositions regardless of length. Unlike Chicago, which capitalizes "About," "Between," and "Through," MLA leaves them lowercase. Unlike AP, which capitalizes all 4+ letter words, MLA lowercases prepositions of any length.

Can I convert a title to MLA style automatically?

Yes. Use the MLA title capitalizer to convert any title with a full word-by-word explanation.

Can I compare MLA with APA, Chicago, and AP?

Yes. The Compare Styles tool shows all 9 styles side by side.

Can I use TitleCasePro for MLA capitalization?

Yes. TitleCasePro follows MLA 9th Edition rules. Use the Title Capitalizer for single titles or the Batch Capitalizer for large lists.

Use the MLA Capitalizer

Ready to capitalize a title in MLA style? The MLA title capitalizer converts your title instantly and explains every word. For processing a list of titles at once, use the batch capitalizer with CSV or TXT import. To see your title in all styles simultaneously, use the style comparison tool.

Read our guide on how to capitalize titles in MLA format for a complete reference with examples.