Identifying Capitalization Errors
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HSPT Language Skills › Identifying Capitalization Errors
Identify which one of the following sentences contains a capitalization error. Select “No Errors” if none of the sentences contains a capitalization error.
I started my paper with the sentence, “flightless birds are fascinating.”
My cousin Cassandra sent me a postcard of the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, California.
Does the book about the history of battleships in the United States mention the U.S.S. Maine?
No Errors
Explanation
The sentence that contains the capitalization error is shown below.
I started my paper with the sentence, "flightless birds are fascinating."
The quoted sentence should begin with a capital letter. The corrected sentence would read,
I started my paper with the sentence, "Flightless birds are fascinating."
Identify which one of the following sentences contains a capitalization error. Select “No Errors” if none of the sentences contains a capitalization error.
No Errors
Big Ben and the London Bridge are two major landmarks in London, England.
The Great Wall of China stretches for thousands of miles across China.
The Eiffel Tower forms one of the most famous silhouettes on the Parisian skyline.
Explanation
Each of these sentences uses correct capitalization. In "Big Ben and the London Bridge are two major landmarks in London, England," "Big Ben" is a proper noun because it is the name of a landmark, and "London" and "England" are capitalized because they are the name of a city and a country, respectively. In "The Great Wall of China stretches for thousands of miles across China," "The Great Wall of China" is capitalized because it is a landmark and "China" is capitalized because it is the name of a country. In "The Eiffel Tower forms one of the most famous silhouettes on the Parisian skyline," "Eiffel Tower" is capitalized because it is a landmark and "Parisian" is capitalized because it is an adjective formed from the name of a city, Paris.