Billy from Toronto asks:

Do I capitalize the word “Internet” or not? What about “e-mail”? Do I use a hyphen or not? I just want some answers!

Have you ever wondered about how you’re supposed to spell Internet and e-mail? You know, is Internet supposed to be capitalized and is there a hyphen in e-mail or not?

I have always been curious about those two things as well, so I was pretty excited to find the answer! Here’s the scoop. The Internet is actually considered to be a proper noun and in the English language, most proper nouns are capitalized. So, in short, the word Internet should always begin with a capital letter. If you haven’t been using a capital I, don’t worry. You’re not the only one!

As far as the term e-mail goes, it is accepted with and without a hyphen. However, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the correct spelling is actually e-mail, with a hyphen. Why is that, you ask? Well, the word e-mail is composed of two different words (electronic and mail), so the hyphen helps separate them for a more technical spelling. Who knew? Now, go on and spread the word!

~ Erin