To Italicize or Not to Italicize? A Rule of Thumb
Writers need to know what types of terms are put in italics.
Think in terms of relative size. Shorter works are not italicized but go in quotes. A short story would be in quotes, but a short story anthology with many stories would have an italicized title. Songs, poems, unpublished works, articles are in quotes. An epic poem is in italics, though, so I suppose it’s up to you to decide if it’s sufficiently long enough to merit the italics.
Here’s a partial list of the things that need to be italicized:
• Titles of photographs
• Titles of art exhibits
• Titles of blogs (the main title used each time, not the web url)
• Title of podcast programs
• Title of a painting
• Title of a book
• Title of a movie
• Title of a play
• Title of a pamphlet or report
• Title of a music album or CD
• A foreign term (if you use it repeatedly, only italicize it the first time. Do not italicize a foreign name like Fifi LaPlant or a foreign city or street name.)
Note: the name of a website is just in regular headline style: “I like to browse Technium.com for new tech tips.”
Names of ships.
Since I write a lot of space opera, you’d be amazed at how often that comes up.
Oh, I NEEDED this (if I could have, I probably would italicized that instead of capitalizing….
Thanks,
Becky
Not sure where the other parenthesis went. Here you go. )
When you are writing online, particularly emails for promotions, it’s always a good idea to write a title in all caps as well as italicize because italics disappear with remarkable frequency. This is particularly true if you are promoting a book.
This is ture. However, the Say What section is aimed at teaching correct style for editing in the US, so these rules apply to the body of your text.
If the title of a thesis is written in CAPS and it includes a published work of an author, for example: DYSTOPIA IN SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN. Does the work, in this case FRANKENSTEIN, needs to be Italicized? Thanks
Yep, whether you use the full title or a partial, you’d italicize the words (don’t use all caps in fiction).
If you are listing awards that an author has earned, would they be italicized?
No. “He won the Nobel Peace Prize.”
I’m writing a personal essay and I was wondering if i needed to italicize Epcot, Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios. (names of parks in Disney World) As well as Disney World itself please email me back asap! (lydia.maz03@gmail.com)
Yep
I’m confused! Everything I have read says names of places are not italicized. Is it only real places? In Fiction are places just capitalized and not italicized? What about ALL CAPS or “quotations”?
EX: Frank pulled his car into the parking lot of his usual haunt, Joe Schmo’s Bar.
His car stopped in front of a strip club with a neon sign that read, TEASERS. Or “TEASERS”
Short named places look weird not being in ALL CAPS and most actual signs are in ALL CAPS!
Speaking of… What about street signs and other types of signs? Most if not all are in ALL CAPS!
EX: He didn’t notice the sign that stated, ALL VEHICLES WILL BE TOWED AFTER 1:00 AM.
OR He didn’t notice the sign that stated, “All Vehicles Will Be Towed After 1:00 AM.”
EX: At the crossroads he saw a sign that read, Hilltop Cemetery 3 Miles, but he turned in the other direction.
OR At the crossroads he saw a sign that read, “Hilltop Cemetery 3 Miles”, but he turned in the other direction.
EX: The chapel’s marquee read, Funeral Service for John Smith.
OR The chapel’s marquee read, “Funeral Service for John Smith.”
EX: Tin cans were tied to his back bumper and it was adorned with a Just Married sign.
OR Tin cans were tied to his back bumper and it was adorned with a “Just Married” sign.
OR should Just Married be italicized? (For some reason it won’t let me do it on here?)
What about a person who is reading a note/message?
EX: Bill picked up the note Susan had left on the counter. Tears filled his eyes as he read, “I’m sorry Billy, but I just can’t do this anymore.”
OR
Looking through the microfilm, his eyes stopped on a newspaper article entitled, “Tragic Accident Takes the Life of Local Youth.”
All of the above are examples that I am dealing with in my fictional short story. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent. LOL Seriously though, any and all help would be GREATLY appreciated! Thank you for your valuable time. Aaron
Names of places are not italicized. “I live in Los Angeles.” We don’t italicize the name of our town or country. With signs, you can use all caps if the sign is all caps, but that isn’t required or even always desired. You could just write: The sign said “Keep Out!” With signs, you do use quotes. Or if it’s a generic, you would say: He slowed at the Stop sign. And you don’t use a comma after the verb: The sign said “Keep Out!” Same rules with a note or letter. Newspaper article titles are in quotes. The name of the newspaper is in italics.
First ride today is the Avatar Flight of Passage –
watched the show Frozen again –
The ride is set in the world of Avatar.
please send me an email
thank you so much
When writing an essay, do you italicize a course name? The internet offers two conflicting opinions on the topic.
Thanks.
Nope.
Do I need to italicize The Huffington Post?
All newspaper titles are italicized, but the titles of blogs are not. Their sections or titled pages would go in quotes (CMOS 8.191).
Do I need to italicize a foreign prize name?
I’m writing the below sentence and wondering whether or not to italicize the prize name, Kyo no Shinise. Or, should I use double quotation marks for it?
We received a prize Kyo no Shinise (a long-established company in Kyoto) from the governor of Kyoto prefecture.
*Kyoto is a prefecture in Japan.
Usually prizes would have a proper name, like the Pulitzer or Nobel Peace Prize, so would be capitalized.
Thanks! Then, no need to italicize the word Kyo No Shinise (<–capitalized) although it's a foreign word?
Usually you italicize a foreign word or phrase, so I probably would. I don’t know if there are definitive rules about this specifically.
Thank you, your advices are helpful.
Thank you! Your advices have been helpful.
If I am referring to Edward Scissorhands the character (comparing his scissorhands to a cat’s paw movements) and not the movie, is it italicized? It’s confusing when the movie title (which should be italicized) is also the name of the character.
A person’s name is never italicized. Movie names are.
How about literary events eg. I have read at Open Up Readers Series? Do I italicize this or leave it as is? Thank you!
Normally events have names and they’d be in quotes. There is a difference between “Open Up” Readers’ Series and “Open Up, Readers” Series and “Open Up Readers’ Series.” So the quotes will help make the name and meaning clear.
Thank you!
Title of a song (not album) usually comes with double quotation marks e.g. “Strawberry Fields Forever”, but if the song title is a foreign word e.g. “Arigatou”, then should it be italicized with double quotation marks? I’m writing a credit of a music album.
That’s a good question, and I’m not sure of the answer? You could Google that. Usually, you would not italicize, just as you wouldn’t a street or restaurant name in the US that is a foreign word, such as Bonjour Lane (if there was something like that). Let me know what you find out.
Thanks for the reply. I have Googled and found no plain rules, but similar cases (foreign word title of a song) are not italicized. So I would only use double quotation marks for the title. Thanks!!
How would you manage a reference to a best seller list such as this:
TIME’s Best New Books to Read This Summer (June 2018)
I’m thinking the following,but it’s awkward I think:
TIME’s (italics) “Best New Books to Read This Summer” (June 2018)
Thank you!
Hi, you wouldn’t put Time in all caps. Titles of magazines are in italics. I’d put the list in quotes to make it clear it’s a list.
How about the name of a film festival? I have a French film festival I’m referring to. It has an accented letter in it. Would it be in italics?
As far as I know, titles of festivals are not italicized, regardless of the language. But I’ll have to see if I can find out anything on this.
Please advise on the treatment for titles of movements (No Child Left Behind, Black Lives Matter, etc), particularly when used in a list. Ex: “Becoming a teacher at the beginning of No Child Left Behind, the National Reading Panel, and Reading First could have set the tone for her entire career…” It seems that italics would help distinguish those as titles for the reader.
I’ve not ever seen them italicized. Having them in caps makes it pretty clear it’s a proper name or title.
Hey,
I’m writing a discussion post for a class I am taking, and the subject I am talking about is a podcast. Are podcast titles italicized? if not what is the proper way to write it out?
so would the short stories of mark twain be italicized? like life on the Mississippi and the notorious jumping frog.
Short stories are in quotes, whereas a title of a book of short stories would be italicized.
I’m editing a memoir with a lot of foreign place names. The table of contents is the first place most of these appear. Are they italicized here and not in the actual text? Or should they be italicized in the first time they appear in the body of the work and not thereafter?
Places aren’t in italics, so you don’t need to worry. We don’t italicize either the Americanized or the actual foreign name–for instance: Florence, Italy or Firenze, Italy.
Good morning.
I am assisting someone on writing her grant. She insists on hand writing it, and that her grammar shows who she truly is. I feel it needs to be correct where applicable. She has already hand written it, and I thought that the name of the club should either be underlined, since it cannot be italicized, or have quotes around it. I am not finding the name of clubs as a rule. Can you please advise?
The sentence..
I started the first Cooking Something Delicious Club on Valentine’s Day last spring.
Thank you very much for your time.
Brandy
The name of a club would just have caps: I joined the Denver Radical Skiiers club, for example. You usually don’t cap the word club unless it’s actually part of the name.
Would you italicize the name of a television special like How the Grinch Stole Christmas?
Yes, any movies or TV specials or mini series or the like would be italicized. An episode of a show would not be (would be in quotes). Think: big things are italicized, and smaller pieces of those big things are in quotes. Blog titles though are just regular font, title caps, but the posts on the blog would be in quotes. Live Write Thrive has a post called “To italicise or Not to Italicize.” (example)
Yes, TV specials are movies, not episodes within a series. Make sense?
What about companies, do they need to be in italics?
Example:
Franklin & Jones, LLC ?
Lowes?
Rust-Oleum?
Thanks!
Nope.
In a novel, do I italicize the whole name with the title or just the title or neither? Like Signora Arelli or Dottore Martino?
You italicize the title of the book. Not the author’s name.
Genus and species of scientific names should be italicized, with the genus always capitalized, but not the species.
In a novel do I need to use italics for drinks – ie. Cinzano Bianco and Gordon’s Gin?
Nope.
So, I can see right off in this post/reply that anything I did italicize, is not that I can see. This italicizing business can be so confusing. I’ve been researching the correct and not correct way of italicizing: names, street names, places, etc. that are written in a foreign languages such as French, Italian, and German.
I’m a writer, and in my manuscript I have foreign languages, French, Italian and German. After my editor went through it, practically everything in a foreign language she made a Professional Edit to ‘not italic’. I have foreign conversations, then with the English translation behind as noted below.
To me, if I were to ‘not italicize’ those foreign words, it does not bring attention to the readers eyes. They might as well skim right over. THEN, why even bother writing anything in a foreign language with it italicized. Does it not come down to the author’s preference and what also looks decent for the reader that captures their attention? This whole thing with italics has been a sore spot with me. I get the whole style thing with CMOS, AP and all the others. I’ve been researching many of them. So if I decide to italicize, is someone going to get really TICKED! So, I’m just asking your thoughts here. Is there a law or something that basically forbids us from using the italic?
Ex: “Regardez votre ventre de bébé!” (Look at your baby belly!) She exclaimed as she looked at Talia’s stomach,
Ex: “It is lovely to meet you, Mademoiselle Skye . . .
Ex: the street named Schönbeinstrasse,
Ex: One young woman turned around and said, “Nous pouvons regarder, tout comme les hommes nous regardent. Ils sont tous les deux très beaux. On ne porte pas d’alliance, il faut donc être à la recherche.” (We can look, just like men look at us. They are both very handsome. One does not wear a wedding ring, so he must be up for grabs.) The girls giggled, thinking it was funny.
Ex: Jéan-Paul headed for the Hotel Spalentor in Basel.
Ex: “So I just checked the address for the Feuerwehrmuseum, and it’s a short walk.” Looking at Skye, she added, “It’s the Fire Brigade Museum.
Ex: . . . to see the Spielzeug Welten Museum Basel, or as it says here, Toy Museum.”
Ex: . . .her family’s favorite, GramPi’s, a cozy little place known for its delicious Swiss cuisines.
Ex: . . .the Gornergrat Railway was 120 years old and shared its name with the Gorner Glacier. Arriving at the Gornergrat Summit, passengers exited and headed toward the Kulmhotel Gornergrat