Do You Capitalize After a Question Mark? (Full Explanation)

If you’ve ever struggled with capitalization in your writing, you’ve come to the right place. Capitalizing after a question mark can seem a bit confusing at first, but we’ve got you covered. This article will fully explain what you need to know about it.

Do You Capitalize After a Question Mark?

You should always capitalize after a question mark when it is placed at the end of a clause. It is known as terminal punctuation, and it functions the same as a period or exclamation mark. It always ends a sentence. The only exception is when it is in speech marks.

Question marks are just another form of terminal punctuation. They are designed to come at the end of a sentence. When used, you are writing a question that you might expect an answer to:

• Where are you going? Can I come?

If you find yourself writing a sentence like this:

• Do I capitalize after a question mark? or not?

Then you are doing something wrong. The problem is that a question mark will always end a sentence, so “or” should have been capitalized. Question marks do not function like commas. They can’t be placed in the middle of a sentence.

When to Capitalize

You should almost always capitalize after a question mark. This is the case because it is terminal, meaning that it ends a sentence. You will only ever find a question mark at the end of a sentence, so it makes sense that you should always capitalize after.

This comes down to common English rules. We all know that new sentences are capitalized. When we place a sentence after a period or exclamation, we know that we must capitalize the first word.

The same rules apply when you use question marks because it functions in the same way.

1. What are you doing? I thought we were going to do this together.
2. Where are you going? He said that he wasn’t going to be here for another few hours.
3. What’s the point? There isn’t much of a reason for us to stick around here if you don’t care enough.
4. Where did you say you came from? That country doesn’t sound all that familiar to me, I’m afraid.
5. How did you manage to get here? Your car seems to be completely destroyed!

When Not to Capitalize

You do not have to capitalize after question marks when they are used within dialogue or quote marks. If you are writing creatively or quoting a specific source that ends with a question mark, you do not have to capitalize after them because they do not terminate the sentence.

To elaborate, you can refer to the following example:

• “What did you say you did for a living?” he asked.

As you can see, the question mark has been placed inside quotation marks. This means that it is a piece of dialogue, but the sentence doesn’t end there. It’s common to use phrases like “he asked” after dialogue like this to indicate which character is speaking.

Since the question mark does not terminate the sentence within the dialogue, “he” does not need to be capitalized.

Do You Capitalize After a Question Mark in Quotes?

You do not need to capitalize after a question mark in quotes. If there is more to add to the quote after the question mark, it is appropriate to continue the sentence in the lower case to make sure you cover what the quote might have left out.

• “Is this all?” was the quote that made him famous.

Do You Capitalize After a Question Mark in Dialogue

In dialogue, you never need to capitalize after a question mark. It’s common for characters to ask questions, and you will often follow that question with a simple “she asked” or “he said.” These sentences do not need to be capitalized because they’re part of the sentence.

• “Did I ask you for help?” she asked.

Do You Capitalize a Question Within a Sentence?

You cannot put a question mark in the middle of a sentence if there are no speech or quotation marks around it. A question mark ends a sentence, so you should always capitalize after one. If you’ve placed a question in the middle of a sentence, you are misusing punctuation.