PROPER() – Capitalizes the first letter of each word

The PROPER() function capitalizes the first letter of each word in a given text string and converts other letters in each word to lowercase.

Syntax

PROPER(text)

text: The text string or a cell reference containing the text to be converted.

Basic example

PROPER(T1A1)

Converts the text in cell T1A1 to proper case.

If T1A1 = "hello world": PROPER(T1A1) → "Hello World"
PROPER("jOHN dOE") → "John Doe"
PROPER("UNITED KINGDOM") → "United Kingdom"
PROPER("123 main st") → "123 Main St"

Key features

Initial capitalization: The first letter of every word is capitalized.
Lowercase conversion: Other letters within words are generally converted to lowercase (implied by "proper" casing and the example "hello world" → "Hello World").

Practical uses

Standardizing names, titles, or headings for consistent appearance.
Cleaning up text data where capitalization is mixed or incorrect.
Formatting text for display purposes.

Common mistakes

Acronyms: Acronyms (e.g., "VIP") may be converted to mixed case (e.g., "Vip").
Specific Nouns/Names: Words with intentional internal capitals (e.g., "McGraw-Hill") might be altered (e.g., to "Mcgraw-hill").
Minor words in titles: It will capitalize all words, including articles or prepositions like "a", "of", "the", which might not always be desired in formal title casing styles.