Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 03:17 am
Rino has set his sight on another goal: To climb the stairs of the Suria Kuala Lumpur City Centre.

Should "To" be in lower case instead? Thanks.
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Type: Question • Score: 3 • Views: 832 • Replies: 7

 
Setanta
 
  3  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 03:18 am
Yes it should, based on the punctuation.
Setanta
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 03:37 am
By the way, the standard expression is "set his sights." From The Free Dictionary-dot-com, sights defined as a noun:

5.
a. . . . A device used to assist aim by guiding the eye, as on a firearm or surveying instrument.
0 Replies
 
tanguatlay
 
  2  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 03:58 am
@Setanta,
Setanta wrote:

Yes it should, based on the punctuation.
Thanks, Setanta.

BTW, where I live, it is common for reporters to capitalise the first word after the colon, as in my example.

And thanks also for the correction of the spelling of the word 'sight'.
Setanta
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 03:59 am
You're welcome.
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Tes yeux noirs
 
  2  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 04:22 am
@tanguatlay,
This is interesting. Grammarly says:
Quote:
In British English, the first letter after the colon is only capitalized if it’s a proper noun or an acronym; in American English, the convention depends on the format but it’s frequently capitalized. If your writing must follow a specific format, check the rules for that format before capitalizing (if in doubt, it might be safer to use the lower case).

This rule applies only if the clause following the colon is independent (a complete sentence). If the colon is used for a list, don’t capitalize the words following it.

I had never realised there was a US/British difference about capitals-after-colons. Upon reflection I realise that frequently when typing, I find myself capping the first letter after a colon, then examining the clause following the colon and uncapping if it does not satisfy the "British" rule cited by Grammarly.

I must say that I think the British rule seems more logical (I would, wouldn't I?), but I am not brave enough to call the alleged American practice an error.

The University Of Bristol Faculty Of Arts (UK) says:
Quote:
There is some debate about whether the clause following the colon should begin with a capital letter or not. If the colon precedes a formal quote, you should begin the language of that quote with a capital letter. If the explanation that follows the colon contains more than one sentence, you should use a capital letter. In other cases, some guides simply advise consistency, others advise that a capital should always be used.

Capital Community College (Hartford CT USA) says:
Quote:
There is some disagreement among writing reference manuals about when you should capitalize an independent clause following a colon. Most of the manuals advise that when you have more than one sentence in your explanation or when your sentence(s) is a formal quotation, a capital is a good idea. The NYPL Writer's Guide urges consistency within a document; the Chicago Manual of Style says you may begin an independent clause with a lowercase letter unless it's one of those two things (a quotation or more than one sentence). The APA Publication Manual is the most extreme: it advises us to always capitalize an independent clause following a colon. The advice given above is consistent with the Gregg Reference Manual.

We also use a colon after a salutation in a business letter . . .

Dear Senator Dodd:

It has come to our attention that . . . . .

. . . and when we designate the speaker within a play or in court testimony:

BIFF: He had the wrong dreams. All, all, wrong.
HAPPY (almost ready to fight Biff): Don't say that!
BIFF: He never knew who he was.



We don't start business letters like that in Britain - it's:

Dear Mr Bloggs

Thank you for your letter...
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tanguatlay
 
  2  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 05:36 am
Thanks, Tes yeux noirs, for the detailed response.

0 Replies
 
mark noble
 
  1  
Reply Sun 15 May, 2016 08:42 am
@tanguatlay,
No - It follows a colon.
0 Replies
 
 

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