Explanatory Notes for the Medical Dictionary Capitalization

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CAPITALIZATION
Most entries in this dictionary begin with a lowercase letter, indicating that the word is not ordinarily capitalized. A few entries have an italic label often capitalized, indicating that the word is as likely to begin with a capital letter as not and is equally acceptable either way. Some entries begin with an uppercase letter, which indicates that the word is usually capitalized:

pan.cre.as . . . noun

braille . . . noun, often capitalized

Gol.gi . . . adjective

The capitalization of entries that are open or hyphenated compounds is similarly indicated by the form of the entry or by an italic label:

heart attack . . . noun

¹neo-Freud.ian . . . adjective, often capitalized N

Agent Orange . . . noun

Many acronyms are written entirely or partly in capitals, and this fact is shown by the form of the entry or by an italic label:

DNA . . . noun

cgs . . . adjective,often capitalized C & G & S

A word that is capitalized in some senses and lowercase in others shows variations from the form of the main entry by the use of italic labels at the appropriate senses:

strep.to.coc.cus . . . noun 1 capitalized : . . .2 plural : . . .

pill . . . noun . . . 2 often capitalized...

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