diff --git a/src/components/FreePlayPicker.vue b/src/components/FreePlayPicker.vue
index 33fbd70..1296b2b 100644
--- a/src/components/FreePlayPicker.vue
+++ b/src/components/FreePlayPicker.vue
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 <script setup lang="ts">
 import { ref, onMounted } from 'vue'
 import { STAGE_NAMES } from '@/config/game'
-import { formatQualityLabel } from '@/music/display'
+import { formatQualityLabel, isChordSymbolQuality } from '@/music/display'
 import type { FreePlayStageAccess } from '@/stores/progress'
 import type { ChordQuality } from '@/music/data/chords'
 import type { ScaleMode } from '@/music/data/scales'
@@ -45,6 +45,11 @@ function selectSubStage(quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalGroup, acces
   if (!accessible) return
   emit('play', quality)
 }
+
+function subStageLabel(quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalGroup): string {
+  const label = formatQualityLabel(quality)
+  return isChordSymbolQuality(quality) ? label : label.replace(/\b\w/g, (c) => c.toUpperCase())
+}
 </script>
 
 <template>
@@ -77,7 +82,7 @@ function selectSubStage(quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalGroup, acces
           :disabled="!subStage.accessible"
           @click="selectSubStage(subStage.quality, subStage.accessible)"
         >
-          {{ formatQualityLabel(subStage.quality) }}
+          {{ subStageLabel(subStage.quality) }}
         </button>
       </div>
     </div>
@@ -146,7 +151,6 @@ function selectSubStage(quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalGroup, acces
   text-align: left;
   cursor: pointer;
   font-size: 0.9rem;
-  text-transform: capitalize;
 }
 
 .sub-stage-btn:last-child {
diff --git a/src/components/TheoryModal.vue b/src/components/TheoryModal.vue
index 88748d5..059472a 100644
--- a/src/components/TheoryModal.vue
+++ b/src/components/TheoryModal.vue
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import type { ScaleMode } from '@/music/data/scales'
 import { INTERVAL_CATALOG } from '@/music/data/intervals'
 import type { IntervalGroup } from '@/music/data/intervals'
 import { SCALE_DESCRIPTIONS, MODE_PARENT } from '@/music/data/theory'
-import { formatQualityLabel } from '@/music/display'
+import { formatQualityLabel, isChordSymbolQuality } from '@/music/display'
 import { intervalToDegreeLabel } from '@/music/matrix'
 import PianoKeyboard from '@/components/PianoKeyboard.vue'
 
@@ -58,7 +58,10 @@ const catalogEntry = computed(() => {
 
 const intervals = computed<string[]>(() => catalogEntry.value?.intervals ?? [])
 
-const title = computed(() => capitalize(formatQualityLabel(props.quality)))
+const title = computed(() => {
+  const label = formatQualityLabel(props.quality)
+  return isChordSymbolQuality(props.quality) ? label : capitalize(label)
+})
 
 const subtitle = computed<string | null>(() => {
   const meta = MODE_PARENT[props.quality as ScaleMode]
diff --git a/src/components/__tests__/FreePlayPicker.spec.ts b/src/components/__tests__/FreePlayPicker.spec.ts
index f9ace01..d23d7aa 100644
--- a/src/components/__tests__/FreePlayPicker.spec.ts
+++ b/src/components/__tests__/FreePlayPicker.spec.ts
@@ -127,6 +127,35 @@ describe('FreePlayPicker', () => {
     })
   })
 
+  describe('sub-stage label casing', () => {
+    it('keeps minor tetrad symbols lowercase (m7, mΔ7)', async () => {
+      const access = makeAccess([
+        {
+          accessible: true,
+          subStages: [
+            { accessible: true, quality: 'm7' },
+            { accessible: true, quality: 'mMaj7' },
+          ],
+        },
+      ])
+      const wrapper = mount(FreePlayPicker, {
+        props: { freePlayAccess: access, initialStage: 0 },
+      })
+      await nextTick()
+      const labels = wrapper.findAll('.sub-stage-btn').map((b) => b.text())
+      expect(labels).toEqual(['m7', 'mΔ7'])
+    })
+
+    it('title-cases word-phrase labels (triads)', async () => {
+      const wrapper = mount(FreePlayPicker, {
+        props: { freePlayAccess: ACCESS_STAGE0_PARTIAL, initialStage: 0 },
+      })
+      await nextTick()
+      const labels = wrapper.findAll('.sub-stage-btn').map((b) => b.text())
+      expect(labels).toEqual(['Major Triad', 'Minor Triad', 'Augmented Triad', 'Diminished Triad'])
+    })
+  })
+
   describe('play emission', () => {
     it('emits play with the quality when an accessible sub-stage is clicked', async () => {
       const wrapper = mount(FreePlayPicker, {
diff --git a/src/components/__tests__/TheoryModal.spec.ts b/src/components/__tests__/TheoryModal.spec.ts
index 278e2c8..8eaa77b 100644
--- a/src/components/__tests__/TheoryModal.spec.ts
+++ b/src/components/__tests__/TheoryModal.spec.ts
@@ -23,6 +23,16 @@ describe('TheoryModal', () => {
     expect(wrapper.find('.modal-subtitle').exists()).toBe(false)
   })
 
+  it('keeps minor tetrad symbol lowercase in title (m7)', () => {
+    const wrapper = mount(TheoryModal, { props: { quality: 'm7' } })
+    expect(wrapper.find('.modal-title').text()).toBe('m7')
+  })
+
+  it('keeps minor-major tetrad symbol lowercase in title (mMaj7)', () => {
+    const wrapper = mount(TheoryModal, { props: { quality: 'mMaj7' } })
+    expect(wrapper.find('.modal-title').text()).toBe('mΔ7')
+  })
+
   it('shows interval group label as title', () => {
     const wrapper = mount(TheoryModal, { props: { quality: 'thirds' } })
     expect(wrapper.find('.modal-title').text()).toBe('Thirds')
diff --git a/src/music/display.ts b/src/music/display.ts
index da064ce..db92796 100644
--- a/src/music/display.ts
+++ b/src/music/display.ts
@@ -51,6 +51,12 @@ export function formatQualityLabel(quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalG
   return SCALE_LABEL[quality as ScaleMode] ?? quality
 }
 
+// Tetrad/extended chord labels (e.g. 'm7', 'mΔ7') are notation symbols, not words —
+// they must never be capitalized, unlike the word-phrase labels used for triads/scales/intervals.
+export function isChordSymbolQuality(quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalGroup): boolean {
+  return quality in CHORD_CATALOG && !(quality in TRIAD_LABEL)
+}
+
 export function formatPuzzleTitle(note: string, quality: ChordQuality | ScaleMode | IntervalGroup): string {
   if (quality in CHORD_CATALOG) {
     const def = CHORD_CATALOG[quality as ChordQuality]