Perfect Your Punctuation: Try Our Punctuating Titles Quiz

Short story titles are enclosed in quotation marks. This convention differentiates shorter works, like short stories and poems, from longer works, which are italicized. For instance, "The Tell-Tale Heart" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe. Using quotation marks around the title indicates that it is a shorter piece of writing, part of a larger collection or anthology, rather than a standalone book.

Poem titles are enclosed in quotation marks, similar to short stories and articles. This convention distinguishes these shorter works from longer works like epic poems, which are italicized. For example, "The Road Not Taken" is a famous poem by Robert Frost. The quotation marks indicate that it is a shorter piece, often part of a poetry collection, unlike epic poems such as The Iliad, which are italicized due to their length and standalone status.

Similar to newspaper articles, the titles of magazine articles are enclosed in quotation marks. This convention helps identify them as shorter works within the larger context of the magazine, which is italicized. For instance, "The Rise of AI" might be a featured article in a magazine. Quotation marks indicate that it is a specific piece within a periodical, such as National Geographic, which would be italicized.

Song titles are placed in quotation marks. This practice sets them apart from the titles of albums or other longer works, which are italicized. For example, "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by Queen, and the quotation marks show that it is a single track. The album title, A Night at the Opera, would be italicized to indicate the longer, complete work containing the song.

Titles of academic papers or journal articles are enclosed in quotation marks. This helps distinguish these specific articles from the names of journals or conferences, which are italicized. For instance, "Climate Change Impacts" could be an article in a scientific journal. The quotation marks indicate it is a specific paper within a larger publication, such as Nature, which would be italicized.

Titles of articles from newspapers, magazines, and journals are placed within quotation marks. This convention helps distinguish these titles from the titles of the publications they appear in, which are italicized. For example, "The Effects of Global Warming" might be an article title in a newspaper. Quotation marks signal to the reader that this is the title of a shorter work, published within a larger periodical, such as The New York Times, which would be italicized.

The titles of books are typically italicized to set them apart from the rest of the text. This helps readers quickly identify them as titles of longer works. If italics are not available, underlining can be used as an alternative. For example, in formal writing or published works, a title like To Kill a Mockingbird is italicized to indicate that it is the name of a full-length book. This convention helps differentiate the title from the rest of the sentence, making it clear that it is a standalone, significant work.

The titles of TV series are italicized to indicate they are extended works. This helps to differentiate the series titles from individual episode titles, which are placed in quotation marks. For example, Friends is a popular TV series, and its title is italicized to show it is a longer work, consisting of multiple episodes. Individual episode titles, such as "The One Where It All Began," would be in quotation marks to show they are part of the series.

The titles of plays are italicized to indicate they are substantial works. This distinguishes them from shorter works or parts of larger works, which are typically placed in quotation marks. For example, Hamlet is a play by William Shakespeare. Italicizing the title shows that it is a significant, standalone piece of literature, unlike shorter works such as scenes or monologues from the play, which might be quoted.

The titles of movies are italicized to indicate they are longer works. Italicization helps to highlight these titles and sets them apart from shorter works or other types of text. For instance, The Godfather is a well-known movie, and italicizing its title shows that it is a full-length film. This practice helps readers immediately recognize it as a significant, standalone work within the context of cinema.