"Trouble with caps"

[outofdejavu]

Regarding the idiom

with a capital A/B etc.
said after the name of a particular quality to say that it is very strong, using its first letter
He's trouble with a capital T!

Source: Definition of with a capital A/B etc. from Cambridge Dictionary Online

If I want to emphasize how strong a particular quality of a person is, can I say:

He's trouble with caps! => In writing, I mean "He's TROUBLE!"
He's a jerk with caps! => In writing, I mean "He's a JERK!"


Are they intelligible in speech?



Sincerely,

[Raymott]

Originally Posted by outofdejavu

Regarding the idiom
If I want to emphasize how strong a particular quality of a person is, can I say:

He's trouble with caps! => In writing, I mean "He's TROUBLE!"
He's a jerk with caps! => In writing, I mean "He's a JERK!"
This is not good writing, at least in the traditional sense. You will not see a published book, for example, with capitals used for emphasis.
The way to stress a word is by the use of italics.
In writing, I mean "He's trouble!"

Are they intelligible in speech?
I've never heard of them. The idiom is "He's trouble with a capital 'T'".
(By the way, that implies 'Trouble', not 'TROUBLE').
If you said "He's trouble with caps!", I'd have to ask you what you meant.
Sincerely,

R.

[konungursvia]

The AmE expression is "with a capital X" for example, "He's a jerk with a capital J."