Mother, father, brother sister and capitalization

Question

Hello,When should the words, mother,  and 'father'  be capitalized? Is brother and  sister also sometimes capitalized?Eg.,When the mother came home, the dinner had already been done.Thanks

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

Capitalize when it is the name you call that person:

When Mother came home...
When her mother came home...

Anonymous · Answer

***** NOT AN EXPERT *****

I think that I am accurate in telling you that it is correct to capitalize the word "mother" when you can erase the

word "mother" and replace it with the name of your mother.

Let's say that your mother's name is Mona.

Can you say, "I want you to meet my Mona"? No. So "I want you to meet my mother."

Can you say, "Our Mona is a teacher?" No. So "Our mother is a teacher."
*****

Can you say, "I told Mona that I loved her"? Yes. So "I told Mother that I loved her."

Can you say, "There were many beautiful women, but Mona was the most beautiful of all." Yes. So "There were many

beautiful women, but Mother was the most beautiful of all."

HAVE A NICE DAY!

Nina_Nia · Answer

I have been told that the word mother is not capitalized if it is used with 'the'.

Thanks

Anonymous · Answer

I believe that you are correct. You do not capitalize "mother" if it is modified by any word:

The mother
His mother
Her mother
That mother
All mothers
A mother
etc.

You capitalize only when you are referring to your mother:

Please, Mother, can I go to the movies with Tony?
I'm very angry with you, Mother.
I am planning on what to buy for Mother and Father this Christmas.
It's Mother's/Mothers'/Mothers Day in the United States this coming Sunday, so Father is going to cook dinner for Mother.

AlpheccaStars · Answer

Nina_NiaI have been told that the word mother is not capitalized if it is used with 'the'.

That's right, and it also applies to other determiners.
Our mother, Pete's mother, etc.

Nina_Nia · Answer

Are similar words; father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandmother, grandfather, cousin, great-grandmother, etc also capitalized in the same way as the word 'mother'?

Thanks

Nina_Nia · Answer

I forgot to include; mommy, mummy, momma, and daddy.

Thanks

Anonymous · Answer

Hello, Nina_Nia:

When I was a child (in the 1940's), we had some neighbors whose son and daughter would address each other like this:

"I want vanilla ice cream, but Brother wants strawberry" or "I'm going to ask Sister to help me with my homework."

Even in those "ancient" days, it was very rare for siblings (brothers and sisters) to address each other .like that.

*****

I know how hard it is to understand the "rules" of capitalization. In the 19th century, there was even more capitalization

that nowadays seems "strange." Please remember that you can capitalize the title of any relative if you are using that

title in place of that person's actual name. Here is a very poor example that I have made up:

I want to buy Grandfather a gift for his birthday, so I am going to ask Grandma what Grandpa likes. I know that Sister

has already bought Cousin Tony a wallet. (P.S. Almost everyone has more than one cousin, so you need to write Cousin

Tony. But you would write, "I love my cousin Tony.")

Please do not feel bad. Even many native speakers have problems with capitalization. Just keep asking until you find the

answer that satisfies you. I am a new member, but I have found almost all of the people here to be very patient and kind.

HAVE A NICE DAY!

Nina_Nia · Answer

Thank you very much for your explanations, James M. Yes, it's a great site indeed.

Have a great day too!

Nina

Anonymous · Answer

when do you capitalize the word sister

Mother, father, brother sister and capitalization

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