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Academy11+

11+ English · Topic explained

Capital letters and full stops

Which two marks does every single sentence need?

The big idea

A sentence starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark.

Picture it

A capital letter is the starting line; the full stop is the finish line.

Key words

capital letter
Starts every sentence, and every proper noun.
full stop
Ends a sentence that is a statement or a calm command.
proper noun
Names of people, places, days, months, and the word I: always a capital.

Worked examples

  1. 1Warm-up

    My dog loves the beach.

    • Capital M to start, full stop to finish.
    • A complete sentence.
  2. 211+ standard

    On Monday, I visited Edinburgh with Aunt Sue.

    • Monday, Edinburgh and Aunt Sue are names: capitals.
    • The word I is always a capital.
  3. 311+ standard

    We go to France every summer.

    • France is a place name: capital.
    • Seasons (summer, winter) are not names: no capital.
  4. 411+ standard

    Wrong: It was late, we went home. Right: It was late. We went home.

    • Two complete sentences can't be joined by just a comma.
    • Use a full stop, or a conjunction: It was late, so we went home.

The common mistake

The mistake

"It was cold, we went inside."

Instead

"It was cold. We went inside." or "It was cold, so we went inside."

Why: A comma on its own can't join two complete sentences.

Where it comes up in the 11+

Proofreading questions hide missing capitals, missing full stops and commas joining two sentences.

The video

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We're making a short video that explains capital letters and full stops step by step. Until then, everything it covers is on this page.

Free printable

Capital letters and full stops worksheet

Practice questions on this topic to print and try on paper, at home or on the way to school.

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Quick quiz

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  1. 1. Which word needs a capital letter? "We met on tuesday in the park."

    • met
    • tuesday
    • park
    Show the answer

    tuesday

    Days of the week are proper nouns.

  2. 2. Which is punctuated correctly?

    • The film was long, we got bored.
    • The film was long. We got bored.
    • the film was long. we got bored.
    Show the answer

    The film was long. We got bored.

    Two sentences, each with a capital letter and a full stop.

  3. 3. Which word should NOT have a capital letter? "In Autumn, Leo flew to Spain."

    • Autumn
    • Leo
    • Spain
    Show the answer

    Autumn

    Seasons are not proper nouns.