punctuation - Do you capitalize both parts of a hyphenated word in a title?


Do you capitalize both parts of a hyphenated word in a title?


"My Ex-Wife Hates Me"


or


"My Ex-wife Hates Me"



Answer



Capitalization of hyphenated words in general is really more a question of style than anything else.
In other word, choose a rule and be consistent with it:


From Garbl's writing center:



When capitalizing hyphenated words in a title, choose a style and follow it consistently.



  • Simplest is to capitalize only the first word unless later words are proper nouns or adjectives:



Unique benefits for part-time violinists, 
All-American flag-waving techniques.



  • Second is to capitalize all words except articles, short prepositions and short conjunctions:



Over-the-Counter Acid Reducers for Sale Here, 
A Matter-of-Fact Approach to Guitar Tuning, 
A New Park-and-Ride Lot for Commuters.


Optional exceptions to the second style are to lowercase the word after a prefix unless it is a proper noun or adjective and to lowercase the second word in a spelled out number:



Anti-intellectual Conduct, 
Twenty-first Century Values.


In your case, since "ex-" is a prefix:


My Ex-wife Hates Me

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