Why isn't every word capitalised like in English?

French does not use English-style title case where most words are capitalised. The standard rule capitalises only the first word of a title. There is one special pattern for titles that begin with a definite article, which this tool handles.

What is the definite-article rule?

When a title begins with le, la, les, or l', the article, any adjective immediately after it, and the first noun all take a capital. That is why it is Le Petit Prince and Les Misérables, with both the adjective and the noun capitalised, but the rest of the title in sentence case.

Does it keep proper nouns capitalised?

Yes. After the leading article group, the tool keeps words you typed with a capital, unless they are ordinary function words like de or et. So a name such as Paris stays capitalised even when it appears later in the title.

What if my title does not start with an article?

Then only the first word is capitalised, which is the default French rule. For example, Voyage au bout de la nuit capitalises only Voyage, leaving the rest in lowercase except any proper nouns.

Is this an official Académie française tool?

No. It applies the widely taught French capitalisation convention used by the Imprimerie nationale and most publishers. Style guides differ on edge cases, so treat it as a fast first pass and adjust for your house style if needed.

French Title Case — Gera Tools

Email me this result

Get this tool's output sent to your inbox, plus one useful tool a week. No spam, unsubscribe any time.

This tool capitalises French titles using French rules, which are very different from English title case. In English most significant words are capitalised; in French, by default, only the first word is. This tool also implements the well-known exception for titles that open with a definite article.

How it works

The algorithm lowercases the whole title, then rebuilds capitalisation:

The first word is always capitalised (L'ami becomes L'ami).
If the title starts with a definite article (le, la, les, or l'), the article, any immediately following adjective (petit, grand, belle, and similar), and the first noun are all capitalised. After that noun, sentence case resumes.
Words you already typed with a capital that are not ordinary function words (like de, et, la) are kept capitalised, preserving proper nouns.

le petit prince          ->  Le Petit Prince
les misérables           ->  Les Misérables
voyage au bout de la nuit -> Voyage au bout de la nuit

Tips and notes

The leading-article rule is why both the adjective and the noun are capitalised in Le Petit Prince, but only the first word is capitalised in titles that begin with a different part of speech. The adjective list covers the common qualifiers that sit between an article and a noun; if your title uses a rarer adjective there, capitalise it by hand. House styles vary on subtitles and hyphenated names, so use this as a fast, rule-correct first pass.