writing - Is one allowed to use capitalization for emphasis?



In written English, is it okay to emphasize words by capitalizing them? As in:



I would NEVER do that!



Are there other methods to achieve this?


On an aside: Dutch uses acute accents for emphasis:



Ik zou dat nooit doen! [normal]
Ik zou dat nóóit doen! [emphasized]




Answer



In non-electronic written English, capitalization is rarely used for emphasis. Much more common is italics or underlining. While underlining was very common in the age of the typewriter, word processing has made italics more accessible (it has long been the preferred technique for emphasis in printed materials).


In email and other electronic communication, capitalization is sometimes used, but it is generally considered akin to a loud voice, rather than an inflected voice. An entire sentence in caps is often called shouting, and is strongly discouraged.


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