---
system: polaris
category: content
topic: grammar-and-mechanics
content_type: guidance
status: latest
retrieved: 2026-05-16
source_url: https://polaris.shopify.com/content/grammar-and-mechanics
tags: [grammar, mechanics, capitalization, punctuation, content-design]
---

# 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.

| Do | Don'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 period | Use 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)