AP Title Case: Tool Packer Profile and Examples

What the Tool Packer AP profile implements

The profile begins with the converter’s baseline title-case engine, restores recognized acronyms and proper terms, then applies an explicit AP-oriented word list. Inside a title it lowercases a, an, and the; the coordinating conjunctions for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so; the words as and if; and recognized prepositions no longer than three letters.

Recognized prepositions of four or more letters remain capitalized. The first word is capitalized even when it appears on the lowercase list, as is the first word after a colon, em dash, or line break. The final word is capitalized regardless of its ordinary minor-word treatment.

• to, in, by, and of are lowercase internally.
• with, from, through, and without are capitalized internally.
• and, but, as, and if are lowercase internally.

See the rules in one repeatable example

For the input “a guide to writing with and without fear,” the AP profile produces “A Guide to Writing With and Without Fear.” The initial article becomes A; to stays lowercase as a two-letter preposition; with and without remain capitalized because they exceed the profile’s three-letter preposition threshold; and stays lowercase as a coordinating conjunction.

A boundary changes the result. In “what to know: a guide from experts,” the a after the colon becomes A because the converter treats it as the first word of a subtitle. This behavior is mechanical and does not require the user to type a second line.

Understand grammar and compound limits

A word’s spelling alone does not always reveal its grammatical role. A term such as up, off, like, or than can function differently by context. Tool Packer uses recognized word sets rather than parsing the complete sentence, so an editor may need to override a result when the word is not acting as the profile assumes.

Hyphenated compounds receive a consistent project rule: the leading component and major internal components are capitalized, while internal articles, conjunctions, and prepositions can remain lowercase. That produces “State-of-the-Art.” It is useful and predictable, but it does not attempt every compound exception in a complete editorial manual.

• Use custom terms for authoritative brand or name spelling.
• Use Keep words in ALL CAPS only when the supplied styling is intentional.
• Use explanations to inspect each mechanical decision.

Use the profile without implying endorsement

Choose this profile when an AP-oriented result is useful, then compare important work with the current AP Stylebook entry required by your organization. AP Stylebook Online is regularly updated, while a local deterministic profile changes only when Tool Packer’s code is deliberately revised.

House style, client instructions, a publication’s headline desk, and the official guide take precedence. This page describes Tool Packer’s implementation as reviewed on the date below; it does not reproduce the full AP Stylebook, certify compliance, or imply that Associated Press reviewed the converter.

• Keep the source title so edits remain reversible.
• Check names and technical capitalization separately.
• Have a human review high-stakes published headlines.