Grammar And Mechanics

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GuidancelatestRetrieved 2026-05-16

Shopify Polaris — Grammar and Mechanics

Capitalization

Sentence case everywhere in UI. This is the primary capitalization rule for all interface copy.

Sentence case = first word capitalized, everything else lowercase except proper or trademarked nouns.

DoDon't
"Create purchase order""Create Purchase Order"
"Billing settings""Billing Settings"
"Add team member""Add Team Member"

Always capitalize:

  • Proper and trademarked nouns: products, brands, countries, people's names
  • Shopify-specific product names (Shopify Payments, Shopify Markets)
  • Job titles when used before or after a person's name

Always lowercase:

  • Generic product or feature terms not unique to Shopify: "templates," "themes," "reports"
  • Job titles used generically (not tied to a name)
  • First letter following a forward slash: "ZIP/postal code"

Punctuation

Periods

Omit in single-sentence interface copy. Use normally in multi-sentence content.

Omit periodUse periods
Button label: "Save product"Helper text: "This will apply to all orders. Changes take effect immediately."
Heading: "Order details"Error body: "Payment failed. Update your card details to continue."

Oxford comma

Required. Use a serial comma in all lists of three or more items.

"Advertising, email marketing, and social media" — not "Advertising, email marketing and social media."

Contractions

Use contractions. They produce a more natural, human tone. "Can't," "it's," "you're," "don't."

Question marks

Avoid where possible. Use only when the outcome of an action is genuinely uncertain. Dialog titles should name the action rather than ask a question when feasible.

Exclamation marks

Use sparingly. Only when the moment genuinely calls for enthusiasm. Never in error messages, warnings, or routine confirmation states.

Hyphens

Use for compound modifiers before nouns ("high-risk order") and for prefixes where two vowels meet. No spaces around hyphens.

Ampersands

Spell out "and." Do not substitute "&" except when part of a proper name.

Numbers

Use numerals for all numbers in UI copy. Do not spell out.

  • Commas for four or more digits: 12,000; 1,500,000
  • En dash for ranges without spaces: "5–10 products"
  • Phone numbers with hyphens: "1-514-555-1234"
  • Currency after the amount: "$10,000 USD"

Spelling

American English, following Merriam-Webster. "Color" not "colour," "center" not "centre," "canceled" not "cancelled."

Voice and address

  • Address merchants as "you"
  • Refer to Shopify as "we"
  • Use active constructions: the subject acts, the object receives the action
  • Prefer "select" over "click" (touch devices exist)