Do You Capitalize “From” In A Title? Learn The Rules

The English language is rich and also grammatically complex. This is because so many different countries speak a version of English that even though it is technically the same language, it ends up responding to different rules depending on the source you consult. Moreover, as a means to standardize writing on its diverse kinds (from general culture articles to complicated professional journal dissertations), the writing community has issued not one but several writing style guides, all containing distinct rules when it comes to capitalization.

The preposition “from” is capitalized when used in titles depending on the writing authority whose guides you follow. If you ask APA, AP, and The New York Times Manual of Style, the answer will always be yes. If you go by Chicago, MLA, Bluebook, or Wikipedia, “from” will always be lowercase.

Let’s go ahead and dig a bit deeper on what “from” is, means, and represents, and whether or not it should, if ever, be capitalized in titles.

“From”: The Description

The word “from” is described by Oxford Languages as “indicating the point in space at which a journey, motion, or action starts,” or “indicating the point in time at which a particular process, event, or activity starts.” Merriam-Webster defines it as “a function word to indicate a starting point of a physical movement or a starting point in measuring or reckoning or in a statement of limits,” as well as “a function word to indicate the starting or focal point of an activity.” Additionally, it is “used as a function word to indicate physical separation or an act or condition of removal, abstention, exclusion, release, subtraction, or differentiation,” as well as “to indicate the source, cause, agent or basis.”

“From” is considered a preposition, meaning that it is “a function word that typically combines with a noun phrase to form another phrase which usually expresses a modification or predication.” Prepositions tend to be relatively small in size, usually around or under four letters. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, “from” can be used in different contexts.

The Multiple Uses Of “From”

• As a preposition used to represent the place where someone or something starts.
  • Ex. “The boy took the toy car out from the toy box.”

• As a preposition used to express time, either when the action starts, when it was made or fabricated, or since it first existed, or from a point in time onwards.
  • Ex. “The wedding reception will take place from 7 o’clock until midnight.”

“Simply Red is a band from the ’80s.”

“That lady’s car dates back from a decade ago.”

“From this day on, everything will be different.”

• As a preposition used to express the distance between two places.
  • Ex. “You’re two blocks away from the house.”

“We’re around one kilometer from the mall.”

• As a preposition indicating origin.
  • Ex. “This olive oil comes directly from Spain.”

“I received a Christmas card from my brother-in-law who lives abroad.”

• As a preposition to express the change in the state of a thing or a person.
  • Ex. “I’m sure this is going from bad to worse.”

“The interpreter works on translating documents from Spanish to English.”

“Ice melts, going from solid to liquid state instantly.”

• As a preposition explaining the cause behind a situation or an action.
  • Ex. “Major injuries from the crash resulted in the untimely passing of the

victim.”

“My headache comes from the time spent on the computer.”

• As a preposition used to express facts or opinions considered when passing judgment or making a decision.
  • Ex. “I think the food will be awesome just from reading the menu online.”

“It’s impossible not to think this way from the information that has been provided.”

• As a preposition indicating something or someone has been removed, taken away, or left a specific place or location. Also, in this context, it is used to express the arithmetic operation of subtraction.
  • Ex. “They were taken from their beds by the abductors.”

“The thief took the bag from the lady while she was crossing the street.”

“If you subtract 5 from 15, the result is 10.”

• As a preposition to show differences between two specific items subject to comparison.
  • Ex. “I’m sure her beliefs are different from mine.”

“The twins are so similar that telling one from the other is extremely hard.”

• As a preposition of position, to show where something is regarding another or different points of view regarding the same topic.
  • Ex. “Her opinion is clearly biased from her own experience.”

“The view from the bay is much better than the one from the rooftop.”

• As a preposition of protection against something or someone.
  • Ex. “The dogs took shelter from the flooding as soon as it started raining.”

“The victim protected herself from her assailant.”

• As a preposition when explaining something that has been prevented, allowed, or not, or something that was stopped from occurring.
  • Ex. “I was put in suspension from attending classes for a week.”

“Truth was kept from the general audience in order to protect the investors.

• As a preposition of range between two reference points.
  • Ex. “Prices will be from $5 onward.

“From younger to oldest, the whole family enjoyed the show.”

A Matter Of Styles

As it was mentioned before, the English language is governed by multiple writing style manuals. These have been published to provide homogeneity to documents and writing in general, The most renowned being the Associated Press Stylebook (AP), the American Psychological Association Publication Manual (APA), The Modern Language Association (MLA), the Bluebook Legal Citation System Guide (Bluebook), the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS), the American Medical Association Manual of Style (AMA), the Harvard Formatting and Style Guide (Harvard), The New York Times Manual of Style (NY Times) and Usage and Wikipedia Manual of Style.

The first main distinction between all these styles is the orientation of the writing in question, whether it be academia or journalism (and even the type of journalism, as a casual blog or lifestyle magazine, wouldn’t possibly have the exact requirements as a prominent newspaper, for example). This is how, for scholarly publications, academic and professional journal articles, thesis, dissertations, book reports, essays, and abstracts, the most common writing and referencing styles will be CMOS, MLA, BB, APA, and AMA. On the other hand, when it comes to all kinds of journalism, including investigative articles, news, reviews, columns, feature writing, lifestyle, and most (if not all) works to be published online (whether they be blogs, web magazines, and informative sites, will most likely be using either AP, NYT or Wikipedia.

Preposition Capitalization In Titles Depending On The Writing Style

Overall, prepositions (alongside articles and conjunctions) are most frequently not capitalized in book, article, and song titles, according to most style guides. Prepositions are usually considered “minor words,” meaning that they have 3-4 letters or fewer, generally meaning that they are not capitalized. Despite this, we can find specific exceptions to this rule:

The First Word Rule

The first word on any title will always be capitalized, no matter its type of word. So, whether or not this first word is a major or minor one, it will be capitalized just for being the very first.

Title Case Rule

Title case means that every word on a title will be capitalized. Notwithstanding this, as a general rule, minor words three letters or less will not be capitalized, allowing the preposition “from” to be written in the initial capital letter.

Journalistic Style

According to the AP stylebook, the APA manual, and New York Times style, any preposition four letters or longer will be capitalized. So the preposition “from” makes the cut on titles of articles and writings done according to these styles.

In Conclusion

Capitalization is a delicate matter, not only subjected to multiple guidelines but to multiple guidelines within different rulebooks. The general recommendation is that the writer becomes familiar with the most efficient and beneficial style to their type of writing or the nature of the text being drafted. That way, the end result will be more aesthetically pleasing and the communication of the intended message more efficient. Nobody wants, after all, a grammatical mishap right at the very beginning of her masterpiece.