how to cite mla research

MLA Guide (7th edition)

The examples provided in this guide are meant to introduce you to the basics of citing sources using the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (seventh edition). For types of resources not included in this guide (e.g., government documents, manuscript collections, video recordings) and for further information about the examples included below, please consult the MLA Handbook itself , and/or a Reference Librarian . For help with layout, margins, spacing and page numbering, see the MLA Handbook (Fig. 12, page 131). Consider using RefWorks to help you track your research and automatically create a bibliography in MLA style.

If you need help with the current version of MLA, please see the guide for MLA ( 8th edition, 2016). If you are unsure which version of MLA to use, please consult with your professor.

Table of Contents:

Parenthetical Documentation Preparing the List of Works Cited A Brief Note on Footnotes and Endnotes For More Help

PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION

When using MLA documentation style, you need to reference your sources by using a combination of a list of works cited (see below) and parenthetical notation . Whenever you refer to or use another's words, facts or ideas in your paper, you are required to cite the source. Generally, brief parenthetical notations consisting of the author's last name and a page reference are sufficient. For example: (Drucker 30) .

Note: If you mention the author in your sentence, then you need only cite the page number . And if you cite more than one work by the same author , include the title of the work in your notation. For example: (Drucker, Management Cases 30) .

1. ONE AUTHOR

The character Folly denies satirizing Christianity when she says, "it is no part of my present plan to rummage through the lives of popes and priests," yet she spends much of her encomium doing just that (Erasmus 115).

2. TWO OR MORE AUTHORS

Max Weber purported that value systems could be studied "without the social scientist's own values distorting such studies" (Keat and Urry 196).

According to Russell Keat and John Urry in Social Science as Theory, Max Weber believed that value systems could be studied "without the social scientist's own values distorting such studies" (196).

Max Weber believed that individuals can objectively study values without their own values interfering with their judgment (Keat and Urry 196).

3. CORPORATE AUTHOR

Children of Central and Eastern Europe have not escaped the nutritional ramifications of iron deficiency, a worldwide problem (UNICEF 44).

4. NO AUTHOR

Marketers of health services and products will find the National Center for Health Statistics' site useful, particularly its statistics on mortality rates. Discovering a population's leading causes of death "tells the researcher a lot about its underlying health problems" ("Information to Die For" 40).

5. WORK IN AN ANTHOLOGY

Cite the author of the essay or story and not the editor of the anthology unless they are the same.

Although some critics disliked Mel Brook's 1993 parody of Robin Hood, it is actually "in the mainstream of the Robin Hood tradition" (Knight 461).

6. INDIRECT QUOTATION

Chief Joseph concluded his surrender by stating eloquently: "[.. .] I will fight no more forever" (qtd. in Safire 108).

7. ONLINE RESOURCE

If the work is not paginated, include the name of the author or editor within the context of your sentence (for example, from a discussion list).

Posting on the VICTORIA listserv, Karen O'Connell mentioned a relevant novel by Wilkie Collins that deals with the 19th-century use of arsenic as a complexion improver.

If the work is paginated, cite it as you would a print resource.

Imagine that the sentences above could somehow be synthesized and used in a single paper. The works cited page would look like this:

WORKS CITED

Erasmus, Desiderius. The Praise of Folly. Trans. Clarence H. Miller. New Haven:

        Yale University Press, 1979. Print.

"Information to Die For."   Marketing Health Services 22.1 (2002): 40-42.  ABI/Inform.

        Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

Keat, Russell, and John Urry.   Social Theory as Science.   2nd ed.  London: Routledge

        and K. Paul, 1982.  Print.

Knight, Stephen.  "Robin Hood: Men in Tights: Fitting the Tradition Snugly."

        Robin Hood: An Anthology of Scholarship and Criticism.   Ed. Stephen

        Knight.  Woodbridge: D. S. Brewer, 1999.  461-467.  Print.

O'Connell, Karen.  "Re: Poisoning."  VICTORIA.  Indiana U.  3 Nov. 2000.  Web.

        14 Aug. 2009.

Safire, William.   Lend Me Your Ears: Great Speeches in History. New York: W. W.

         Norton and Company, 1992. Print.

UNICEF.   Generation in Jeopardy: Children in Central and Eastern Europe and the

         Former Soviet Union. Ed. Alexander Zouev. Armonk: M. E. Sharpe, 1999.

         Print.

PREPARING THE LIST OF WORKS CITED

As demonstrated above, a works cited page consists of an alphabetical listing of the books, articles and other sources that you parenthetically noted in your paper. The works cited page occurs at the end of your paper; however, it is useful to create a draft of it before you begin writing. Following are typical examples of the types of references you will use in your research.

Include some or all of the following elements in your book citation:

• Author or editor
• Title (italicized)
• Translator or compiler
• Volume(s) used
• Name of series
• Place of publication, publisher, and date of publication
• Page numbers
• Name of vendor, database, or provider (italicized)
• Medium of publication consulted (e.g., Print)
• Date of access (Web only; day, month, year)
• Supplementary information and annotation

1. ONE AUTHOR OR EDITOR

Cather, Willa.   The Professor's House.   New York: A. A. Knopf, 1925.  Print.

UNICEF.   Generation in Jeopardy: Children in Central and Eastern Europe

         and the Former Soviet Union.   Ed. Alexander Zouev.  Armonk: M. E.

         Sharpe, 1999.  Print.

Hudson, Valerie N., ed.   Culture and Foreign Policy.   Boulder: L. Rienner

         Publishers, 1997.  Print.

2. TWO OR MORE AUTHORS OR EDITORS

    Names should be given in the order in which they appear on the title page.

Keat, Russell, and John Urry. Social Theory as Science. 2nd ed. London: Routledge

         and K. Paul, 1982. Print.

Kennedy, Mary, Kathy Lubelska, and Val Walsh, eds. Making Connections: Women's

         Studies, Women's Movements, Women's Lives. London: Taylor and Francis,

        1993. Print.

3. ELECTRONIC BOOK

    Include the vendor, database, or provider's name (italicized) and date of access (day, month, year) .

Turam, Berna. Between Islam and the State: The Politics of Engagement. Stanford,

         CA: Stanford UP, 2007. NetLibrary. Web. 14 Aug. 2009.

     If the book is accessed from a SCHOLARLY PROJECT , also include the project     name, place of publication, and the date of the electronic publication if available.

Child, Lydia Maria. An Appeal in Favor of that Class of Americans Called Africans.

        Boston: Allen and Ticknor, 1833. Women Writers Online. Brown U. Web. 14

        Aug. 2009.

4. ANTHOLOGY

Knight, Stephen.  "Robin Hood: Men in Tights: Fitting the Tradition Snugly."          

        Robin Hood: An Anthology of Scholarship and Criticism.   Ed. Stephen

Barrick, Richard, John Sullivan, and Alexander White.  "The American Bloody Register."

       Pillars of Salt: An Anthology of Early American Criminal Narratives.   Comp. 

       Daniel E. Williams.  Madison: Madison House, 1993.  233-258.  Print.

5. INTRODUCTION, PREFACE, FOREWORD, OR AFTERWORD

Ritterson, Michael.  Introduction.   The Odin Field: A Story. By Wilhem Raabe.

      Trans. Michael Ritterson.  Studies in German Literature, Linguistics, and Culture.

      Rochester: Camden House, 2001.  xi-xxvii.  Print.

6. MULTIVOLUME WORK

Tomkins, Silvan S.   Affect, Imagery, Consciousness.   4 vols.  New York: Springer,

         1962-1992. Print.

Anthony, Robert N., and James S. Reece.   Accounting Principles.   7th ed.  Chicago:

        Irwin, 1995.  Print.

8. TRANSLATION

Erasmus, Desiderius.   The Praise of Folly.   Trans.  Clarence H. Miller.  New Haven:

        Yale, 1979. Print.

9. ARTICLE IN A REFERENCE BOOK

"Audubon, John James."   The New Encyclopaedia Britannica: Micropaedia.   15th

        ed.  2002.  Print.

"Audubon, John James."   Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.   Encyclopaedia

        Britannica, 2009.  Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

Ebeling, Richard, ed.   Global Free Trade: Rhetoric or Reality?  Hillsdale, MI: Hillsdale

        College Press, 1993.  Print.  Champions of Freedom 20.

B. Articles in Periodicals

Include some or all of the following in your article citation:

• Article title (usually in quotation marks)
• Periodical title (italicized)
• Series/Issue number or name
• Volume number
• Issue number (if available)
• Publication date (year for scholarly journals; day, month, year for others, as available)
• Medium of publication
• Name of database (italicized and placed before medium of publication) (Web only)
• Date of access (day, month, year) (Web only)

1. SCHOLARLY JOURNAL

Freedman, L.  "The Changing Forms of Military Conflict."   Survival 40.4 (1998): 39-56.

        Print.

Kirby, John T.  "Aristotle on Metaphor."   American Journal of Philology 118.4

        (1997): 517-554.  Print.

Online Journal -- Use n. pag. to indicate the absence of inclusive page numbers.

Ketabgian, Tamara.  Rev. of The Body Economic: Life, Death, and Sensation in

        Political Economy and the Victorian Novel, by Catherine Gallagher.  Bryn Mawr

        Review of Comparative Literature 6.2 (2007): n. pag.  Web.  19 Aug. 2009.

Chan, Winnie.  "Curry on the Divide in Rudyard Kipling's Kim and Gurinder Chadha's

        Bend it Like Beckham."  ARIEL: A Review of International English

        Literature 36.3-4 (2005): 1-23. Web.  14. Aug. 2009.

      Full text of an article from a Database -- Include the name of the      database, the name of the database provider and the date of access.      Use n. pag. to indicate the absence of inclusive page numbers.   

Freedman, Lawrence. "The Changing Forms of Military Conflict." Survival 40.4 (1998):

        39-56. ProQuest Research Library.  Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

  Kirby, John T.  "Aristotle on Metaphor."   American Journal of Philology 118.4 (1997):

       517-554.  JSTOR.  Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

2. MAGAZINE

     Monthly or Bimonthly

Goldberger, Paul. "Machines for Living: Architectonic Allure of the Automobile."

        Architectural Digest Oct. 1996: 82.

     Weekly

Levy, Steven, and Brad Stone.  "Silicon Valley Reboots."   Newsweek 25 Mar.

        2002: 42-50.  Print.

        2002: 42-50.  Academic Search Premier.  Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

3. ANONYMOUS ARTICLE

"Information to Die For."   Marketing Health Services 22.1 (2002): 40-42.  Print.

"Information to Die For."   Marketing Health Services 22.1 (2002): 40-42.   ABI/Inform.        14 Aug. 2009.

4. NEWSPAPER

Pianin, Eric.  "Use of Arsenic in Wood Products to End."   The Washington Post 13

       Feb. 2002, final ed.: A2.  Print.

Pianin, Eric.  "Use of Arsenic in Wood Products to End."   The Washington Post 13 Feb.

       2002, final ed.: A2.  LexisNexis Academic.   Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

Nash, Alanna.  "Hit 'em with a lizard!"  Rev. of   Basket Case, by Carl Hiaasen.  New

        York Times 3 Feb. 2002, late ed., sec. 7: 24.  Print.

        York Times 3 Feb.  2002, late ed., sec. 7: 24.  LexisNexis Academic.  Web.  14

C. Web Sites

Following are elements to include when citing entire Web sites. Keep in mind that

if you cannot find all of the elements, you should include whatever is available on the site . The URL is no longer required unless locating the site requires it or your professor requires it.

• Title of Web site (italicized)
• Site publisher/sponsor
• Date of site's publication (if none, use n.d. )
• Date of access (day, month, year)

1. SCHOLARLY PROJECT

Crane, Gregory, ed.  Perseus Digital Library.  Dept. of the Classics, Tufts U.

      n.d.  Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

2. PROFESSIONAL SITE

Financial Accounting Standards Board .  Feb. 2002.  Web.  14 Aug. 2009.

3. PERSONAL SITE

Lewis, Paul.  The Wilkie Collins Pages.   n.d.  Web. 14 Aug. 2009. 

       <http://www.paullewis.co.uk/>.

See also Electronic Book and Periodicals above.

D. Online Postings

To cite a posting from a discussion list, include the following elements if available:

• Author of posting
• Title of posting (from subject line of posting, in quotes)
• Name of discussion list
• Date of posting
• 5. Medium of publication
• Date of access

O'Connell, Karen.  "Re: Poisoning." VICTORIA. Indiana U.  3 Nov. 2000. Web.

A BRIEF NOTE ON FOOTNOTES AND ENDNOTES

Long explanatory footnotes or endnotes can distract the reader. Nevertheless, you may occasionally need to clarify a citation with a bibliographic note . Or you may wish to incorporate information that might interest your reader but which would seem tangential if included within the text of your paper. In this case, you would use a content note. Notes are indicated with consecutive superscript numbers within the text of your paper. The actual note is indented and can occur either as a footnote at the bottom of the page or as an endnote at the end of the paper.

1. BIBLIOGRAPHIC NOTE

Nineteenth-century critics of cheap, mass-produced fiction feared that the gory subject matter of stories like Sweeney Todd would lead a generation of youth into depravity. 1

          1 For a selection of penny fiction as well as 19th-century criticism of it, see

Haining's The Penny Dreadful .

2. CONTENT NOTE

Charles Knight did not rely solely on the cheaply printed word in publications like the Penny Magazine to educate people; he also mass-produced images to diffuse knowledge visually. 2

2 Patricia Anderson's The Printed Image and the Transformation of Popular Culture, 1790-1860 provides examples of Penny Magazine images, such as depictions of flamingos, reproduced portraits of people like Benjamin Franklin, and engravings of famous artworks like "The Dying Gladiator" and "Laocoon" (50-83).

FOR MORE HELP

Following are links to sites that have additional information and further examples:

• RefWorks : Once you have created an account, go to Tools/Preview Output Style to see examples of MLA style.
• Purdue's Online Writing Lab (OWL) : Excellent source for research, writing and citation tips.
• Citing Sources : Duke University's guide to citing sources. The site offers comparison citation tables with examples from APA , Chicago , MLA and Turabian for both print and electronic works.
• Citing Electronic Primary Sources : From the Library of Congress. Provides MLA and Turabian examples of citing formats such as films, photographs, maps and recorded sound that are accessed electronically.

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The MLA Style Center

What is mla style.

Building confidence in the information and ideas we share with one another is perhaps more important today than ever before, and for nearly a century it has been the driving principle behind MLA style, a set of standards for writing and documentation used by writers to find and evaluate information, alert their audience to the trustworthiness of their findings through citation, and shape the expression of their ideas in conversation with others. 

Resources for MLA Style

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MLA Handbook , 9th Edition

The ninth edition of the MLA Handbook , published in spring 2021, builds on the MLA's unique approach to documenting sources using a template of core elements—facts common to most sources, like author, title, and publication date—that allows writers to cite any type of work, from books, e-books, and journal articles in databases to song lyrics, online images, social media posts, dissertations, and more. With this focus on source evaluation as the cornerstone of citation, MLA style promotes the skills of information and digital literacy so crucial today. The new edition offers

• New chapters on grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, numbers, italics, abbreviations, and principles of inclusive language
• Guidelines on setting up research papers in MLA format with updated advice on headings, lists, and title pages for group projects
• Revised, comprehensive, step-by-step instructions for creating a list of works cited in MLA format that are easier to learn and use than ever before
• A new appendix with hundreds of example works-cited-list entries by publication format, including websites, YouTube videos, interviews, and more
• Detailed examples of how to find publication information for a variety of sources
• Newly revised explanations of in-text citations, including comprehensive advice on how to cite multiple authors of a single work
• Detailed guidance on using notes in MLA style
• Instructions on quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, and avoiding plagiarism
• Annotated bibliography examples
• Numbered sections throughout for quick navigation
• Advanced tips for professional writers and scholars

The MLA Style Center offers free online resources on MLA style, including an interactive MLA format template, answers to common questions on Ask the MLA, advice from the MLA editors, and more. Get updates by signing up for The Source newsletter, and follow us on Twitter @MLAstyle .

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / MLA Format / How to Cite a Report in MLA

How to Cite a Report in MLA

Citing a report.

Report – A document containing the findings of an individual or group. Can include a technical paper, publication, issue brief, or working paper.

Report Citation Structure

Last, First M. Report Title . Publisher, date published, URL (if applicable).

Note: If the author and publisher of the report are the same, start your citation with the title of the report instead. 

First Page of Report

Report Citation Example:

Gorbunova, Yulia and Konstantin Baranov. Laws of Attrition: Crackdown on Russia’s Civil Society After Putin’s Return to the Presidency . Human Rights Watch, 2013.

Report In-text Citation Structure:

(Author Last Name(s) Page #)

Report In-text Citation Example: 

(Gorbunova and Konstantin 4)

MLA Formatting Guide

MLA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Sample Paper
• Works Cited
• MLA 8 Updates
• MLA 9 Updates
• View MLA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all MLA Examples

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To cite a report in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author or the organization name, title of the report, and publication year. The templates for in-text citations and works-cited-list entries of a report, along with examples, are given below:

Report created and published by the same organization

In-text citation template and example:

Use the organization’s name in both prose and parenthetical citation.

Citation in prose: Pew Research Center

Parenthetical: (Pew Research Center)

Works-cited-list entry template and example:

Title of the Chapter . Organization Name, Publication Date.

Audio and Podcasting Fact Sheet . Pew Research Center, July 2018.

Different authors and publisher

Use the below template when the author and publisher are different. For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues.” In subsequent citations, use only the surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues.” In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the first author followed by “et al.”

Citation in prose:

First instance: Kim Parker and others . . . Or Kim Parker and colleagues

Subsequent occurrences: Parker and others . . . Or Parker and colleagues

Parenthetical:

. . . (Parker et al.)

Surname, First Name, et al. Title of the Report . Organization Name, Publication Date, URL.

Parker, Kim, et al. About Half of Lower-Income Americans Report Household Job or Wage Loss Due to COVID-19 . Pew Research Center, Apr. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/ 04 /21/about-half-of-lower-income-americans-report-household-job-or-wage-loss-due-to-covid-19/ .

To cite a government document in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author or the organization name, title of the document, and publication year. The templates for in-text citations and works-cited-list entries of a government document, along with examples, are given below:

For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the author in the first occurrence. In subsequent citations, use only the surname. In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the author.

First mention: Ferdinand Hayden . . .

Subsequent occurrences: Hayden . . .

. . . (Hayden)

Surname, First Name. Title of the Government Document . Organization Name, Publication Date.

Hayden, Ferdinand. Preliminary Report of the United States Geological Survey of Montana and Portions of Adjacent Territories . Government Printing Office, 1872.

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ENG 1010 - Fabrizi: Help & Cite Your Sources

• Finding Articles
• Finding Books
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• Help & Cite Your Sources

Citation Style

• Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) This link opens in a new window Includes APA, Chicago, and MLA citation samples, as well as a variety of writing samples.
• MLA Style - Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) Includes MLA citation examples, as well as information on formatting your MLA style research paper, inluding in-text citations, quotations, and the Works Cited page.
• APA Style - Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) Includes APA citation examples, as well as formatting, in-text citations, quotations, a References list, and an APA sample paper.
• Chicago Manual of Style - Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) Includes information about Chicago style and citation samples.
• MyBib Creates citations for sources in MLA, APA, and many other styles. Disclaimer: This site is not maintained by the Tri-C Library. Always double-check any citations generated to ensure accuracy.

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How to Avoid Plagiarizing

• Plagiarism: What It is and How to Recognize and Avoid It
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MLA Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Web Publications)

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

The MLA Handbook highlights principles over prescriptive practices. Essentially, a writer will need to take note of primary elements in every source, such as author, title, etc. and then assort them in a general format. Thus, by using this methodology, a writer will be able to cite any source regardless of whether it’s included in this list.

However, this guide will highlight a few concerns when citing digital sources in MLA style.

Best Practices for Managing Online Sources

Because online information can change or disappear, it is always a good idea to keep personal copies of important electronic information whenever possible. Downloading or even printing key documents ensures you have a stable backup. You can also use the Bookmark function in your web browser in order to build an easy-to-access reference for all of your project's sources (though this will not help you if the information is changed or deleted).

It is also wise to keep a record of when you first consult with each online source. MLA uses the phrase, “Accessed” to denote which date you accessed the web page when available or necessary. It is not required to do so, but it is encouraged (especially when there is no copyright date listed on a website).

Important Note on the Use of URLs in MLA

Include a URL or web address to help readers locate your sources. Because web addresses are not static (i.e., they change often) and because documents sometimes appear in multiple places on the web (e.g., on multiple databases), MLA encourages the use of citing containers such as Youtube, JSTOR, Spotify, or Netflix in order to easily access and verify sources. However, MLA only requires the www. address, so eliminate all https:// when citing URLs.

Many scholarly journal articles found in databases include a DOI (digital object identifier). If a DOI is available, cite the DOI number instead of the URL.

Online newspapers and magazines sometimes include a “permalink,” which is a shortened, stable version of a URL. Look for a “share” or “cite this” button to see if a source includes a permalink. If you can find a permalink, use that instead of a URL.

Abbreviations Commonly Used with Electronic Sources

If page numbers are not available, use par. or pars. to denote paragraph numbers. Use these in place of the p. or pp. abbreviation. Par. would be used for a single paragraph, while pars. would be used for a span of two or more paragraphs.

Basic Style for Citations of Electronic Sources (Including Online Databases)

Here are some common features you should try to find before citing electronic sources in MLA style. Not every web page will provide all of the following information. However, collect as much of the following information as possible:

• Author and/or editor names (if available); last names first.
• "Article name in quotation marks."
• Title of the website, project, or book in italics.
• Any version numbers available, including editions (ed.), revisions, posting dates, volumes (vol.), or issue numbers (no.).
• Publisher information, including the publisher name and publishing date.
• Take note of any page numbers (p. or pp.) or paragraph numbers (par. or pars.).
• DOI (if available, precede it with "https://doi.org/"), otherwise a URL (without the https://) or permalink.
• Date you accessed the material (Date Accessed). While not required, saving this information it is highly recommended, especially when dealing with pages that change frequently or do not have a visible copyright date.

Use the following format:

Author. "Title." Title of container (self contained if book) , Other contributors (translators or editors), Version (edition), Number (vol. and/or no.), Publisher, Publication Date, Location (pages, paragraphs and/or URL, DOI or permalink). 2 nd container’s title , Other contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication date, Location, Date of Access (if applicable).

Citing an Entire Web Site

When citing an entire website, follow the same format as listed above, but include a compiler name if no single author is available.

Author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number (if available), Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available), DOI (preferred), otherwise include a URL or permalink. Date of access (if applicable).

Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site . Version number, Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available), URL, DOI or permalink. Date of access (if applicable).

The Purdue OWL Family of Sites . The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008, owl.english.purdue.edu/owl. Accessed 23 Apr. 2008.

Felluga, Dino. Guide to Literary and Critical Theory . Purdue U, 28 Nov. 2003, www.cla.purdue.edu/english/theory/. Accessed 10 May 2006.

Course or Department Websites

Give the instructor name. Then list the title of the course (or the school catalog designation for the course) in italics. Give appropriate department and school names as well, following the course title.

Felluga, Dino. Survey of the Literature of England . Purdue U, Aug. 2006, web.ics.purdue.edu/~felluga/241/241/Home.html. Accessed 31 May 2007.

English Department . Purdue U, 20 Apr. 2009, www.cla.purdue.edu/english/. Accessed 31 May 2015.

A Page on a Web Site

For an individual page on a Web site, list the author or alias if known, followed by an indication of the specific page or article being referenced. Usually, the title of the page or article appears in a header at the top of the page. Follow this with the information covered above for entire Web sites. If the publisher is the same as the website name, only list it once.

Lundman, Susan. “How to Make Vegetarian Chili.”  eHow , www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html. Accessed 6 July 2015.

“ Athlete's Foot - Topic Overview. ”   WebMD , 25 Sept. 2014, www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/tc/athletes-foot-topic-overview.

Citations for e-books closely resemble those for physical books. Simply indicate that the book in question is an e-book by putting the term "e-book" in the "version" slot of the MLA template (i.e., after the author, the title of the source, the title of the container, and the names of any other contributors).

Silva, Paul J.  How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing. E-book, American Psychological Association, 2007.

If the e-book is formatted for a specific reader device or service, you can indicate this by treating this information the same way you would treat a physical book's edition number. Often, this will mean replacing "e-book" with "[App/Service] ed."

Machiavelli, Niccolo.  The Prince , translated by W. K. Marriott, Kindle ed., Library of Alexandria, 2018.

Note:  The MLA considers the term "e-book" to refer to publications formatted specifically for reading with an e-book reader device (e.g., a Kindle) or a corresponding web application. These e-books will not have URLs or DOIs. If you are citing book content from an ordinary webpage with a URL, use the "A Page on a Web Site" format above.

An Image (Including a Painting, Sculpture, or Photograph)

Provide the artist's name, the work of art italicized, the date of creation, the institution and city where the work is housed. Follow this initial entry with the name of the Website in italics, and the date of access.

Goya, Francisco. The Family of Charles IV . 1800. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid. Museo Nacional del Prado , www.museodelprado.es/en/the-collection/art-work/the-family-of-carlos-iv/f47898fc-aa1c-48f6-a779-71759e417e74. Accessed 22 May 2006.

Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine . 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive , www.artchive.com/artchive/K/klee/twittering_machine.jpg.html. Accessed May 2006.

If the work cited is available on the web only, then provide the name of the artist, the title of the work, and then follow the citation format for a website. If the work is posted via a username, use that username for the author.

Adams, Clifton R. “People Relax Beside a Swimming Pool at a Country Estate Near Phoenix, Arizona, 1928.” Found, National Geographic Creative, 2 June 2016, natgeofound.tumblr.com/.

An Article in a Web Magazine

Provide the author name, article name in quotation marks, title of the web magazine in italics, publisher name, publication date, URL, and the date of access.

Bernstein, Mark. “ 10 Tips on Writing the Living Web. ”   A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites , 16 Aug. 2002, alistapart.com/article/writeliving. Accessed 4 May 2009.

An Article in an Online Scholarly Journal

For all online scholarly journals, provide the author(s) name(s), the name of the article in quotation marks, the title of the publication in italics, all volume and issue numbers, and the year of publication. Include a DOI if available, otherwise provide a URL or permalink to help readers locate the source.

Article in an Online-only Scholarly Journal

MLA requires a page range for articles that appear in Scholarly Journals. If the journal you are citing appears exclusively in an online format (i.e. there is no corresponding print publication) that does not make use of page numbers, indicate the URL or other location information.

Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current Conditions and Future Directions.” Social Work and Society: The International Online-Only Journal, vol. 6, no. 2, 2008, www.socwork.net/sws/article/view/60/362. Accessed 20 May 2009.

Article in an Online Scholarly Journal That Also Appears in Print

Cite articles in online scholarly journals that also appear in print as you would a scholarly journal in print, including the page range of the article . Provide the URL and the date of access.

Wheelis, Mark. “ Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. ”   Emerging Infectious Diseases , vol. 6, no. 6, 2000, pp. 595-600, wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/6/00-0607_article. Accessed 8 Feb. 2009.

An Article from an Online Database (or Other Electronic Subscription Service)

Cite online databases (e.g. LexisNexis, ProQuest, JSTOR, ScienceDirect) and other subscription services as containers. Thus, provide the title of the database italicized before the DOI or URL. If a DOI is not provided, use the URL instead. Provide the date of access if you wish.

Alonso, Alvaro, and Julio A. Camargo. “ Toxicity of Nitrite to Three Species of Freshwater Invertebrates. ”   Environmental Toxicology, vol. 21, no. 1, 3 Feb. 2006, pp. 90-94. Wiley Online Library , https://doi.org/10.1002/tox.20155. Accessed 26 May 2009.

Langhamer, Claire. “Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England.” Historical Journal, vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-96. ProQuest , https://doi.org/10.1017/S0018246X06005966. Accessed 27 May 2009.

E-mail (including E-mail Interviews)

Give the author of the message, followed by the subject line in quotation marks. State to whom the message was sent with the phrase, “Received by” and the recipient’s name. Include the date the message was sent. Use standard capitalization.

Kunka, Andrew. “ Re: Modernist Literature. ”  Received by John Watts, 15 Nov. 2000.

Neyhart, David. “ Re: Online Tutoring. ” Received by Joe Barbato, 1 Dec. 2016.

A Listserv, Discussion Group, or Blog Posting

Cite web postings as you would a standard web entry. Provide the author of the work, the title of the posting in quotation marks, the web site name in italics, the publisher, and the posting date. Follow with the date of access. Include screen names as author names when author name is not known. If both names are known, place the author’s name in brackets.

Author or compiler name (if available). “Posting Title.” Name of Site , Version number (if available), Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), URL. Date of access.

Salmar1515 [Sal Hernandez]. “Re: Best Strategy: Fenced Pastures vs. Max Number of Rooms?” BoardGameGeek , 29 Sept. 2008, boardgamegeek.com/thread/343929/best-strategy-fenced-pastures-vs-max-number-rooms. Accessed 5 Apr. 2009.

Begin with the user's Twitter handle in place of the author’s name. Next, place the tweet in its entirety in quotations, inserting a period after the tweet within the quotations. Include the date and time of posting, using the reader's time zone; separate the date and time with a comma and end with a period. Include the date accessed if you deem necessary.

@tombrokaw. “ SC demonstrated why all the debates are the engines of this campaign. ”   Twitter, 22 Jan. 2012, 3:06 a.m., twitter.com/tombrokaw/status/160996868971704320.

@PurdueWLab. “ Spring break is around the corner, and all our locations will be open next week. ”   Twitter , 5 Mar. 2012, 12:58 p.m., twitter.com/PurdueWLab/status/176728308736737282.

A YouTube Video

Video and audio sources need to be documented using the same basic guidelines for citing print sources in MLA style. Include as much descriptive information as necessary to help readers understand the type and nature of the source you are citing. If the author’s name is the same as the uploader, only cite the author once. If the author is different from the uploader, cite the author’s name before the title.

McGonigal, Jane. “Gaming and Productivity.” YouTube , uploaded by Big Think, 3 July 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkdzy9bWW3E.

“8 Hot Dog Gadgets put to the Test.” YouTube, uploaded by Crazy Russian Hacker, 6 June 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBlpjSEtELs.

A Comment on a Website or Article

List the username as the author. Use the phrase, Comment on, before the title. Use quotation marks around the article title. Name the publisher, date, time (listed on near the comment), and the URL.

Not Omniscient Enough. Comment on “ Flight Attendant Tells Passenger to ‘Shut Up’ After Argument Over Pasta. ”  ABC News, 9 Jun 2016, 4:00 p.m., abcnews.go.com/US/flight-attendant-tells-passenger-shut-argument-pasta/story?id=39704050.

CLAS 190: From Circe to Wonder Woman: Mythical Marginalized Figures in Modern US Culture (Crofton-Sleigh)

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MLA Citation Style

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Guides to Citing Sources in MLA Citation Style

The MLA Handbook is the official, authoritative source to use for creating your citations in correct MLA format.  It utilizes in-text citations and a works cited page at the end.  The following sections of the handbook are the ones you will use most often.

• Works-Cited-List Entries by Publication Format You can find over 500 sample citations here for almost every possible type of resource. They are in the format you use in your Works Cited list at the end of your paper.
• In-Text Citations: Overview This section of the handbook provides guidance on how to create in-text citations for your sources in the body of your paper.
• MLA Handbook This link opens in a new window Click this link to connect to the table of contents for the entire handbook. Here you can find all the sections of the handbook, such as Chapter One, which provides guidance on formatting your paper (the margins, title, header, font, etc.).

Another tool that can be helpful when using the MLA citation style is the following:

• The OWL at Purdue: MLA Formatting and Style Guide The OWL guide to citing references in the MLA format is a handy online source that can help with creating correct citations.
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EGL 101-06R 06T Donald Brown Spring 2024

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What is a citation?

A citation is an acknowledgement that you have used someone else's research or ideas in the creation of your own research paper or essay.

In addition to giving credit to authors for using their work, citations allow readers of your work to track down sources that might be of interest to them.

Oakton Library Citation Guide

• Cite it Right!

Find more information about citations, different citation styles, and citation managment tools.  

Online Guides for MLA

• MLA Formatting and Style Guide From the Purdue Writing Lab
• In-Text Citations and Examples Whether you are quoting directly or paraphrasing, you make a brief in-text citation at the point in your writing where you use another person's work. In MLA style, this generally includes mention of the author and the page number(s) where you found the information.
• Sample Works Cited Page The works cited page goes at the end of your research paper and includes full citations for all of the sources you consulted.
• Annotated Bibliography Examples

What needs to be cited?

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What Is Citation?

Citing sources, mla citation examples, chicago citation examples, quoting vs. paraphrasing, citation managers.

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Cite a Source: How & Why

More Resources

• Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing From Purdue OWL
• Avoiding Plagiarism Explains form of plagiarism and how to avoid it with citation. From Purdue OWL

Citation  involves properly crediting the authors of information sources used in a paper or presentation. Remember to cite not only text-based sources, but also images, video, and other media.

Different disciplines use certain  citation styles . Use one of the style guides to the right for the citation guidelines you need.

Always cite your sources. Follow these Quick Style Guides or the complete style manuals.

Quick Style Guides

• MLA Style Quick Guide
• Chicago Style Quick Guide
• APA Style Quick Guide
• Citing U.S. Government Publications
• Purdue Owl  (online style guides)
• Quick Guide to Oral Citation

Full Style Manuals

Most citation questions can be answered with the quick guides above. For more specific questions, refer to these full manuals, or consult a librarian.

In-Text Citations

Known Author:  (Wordsworth 263) Example: Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263).

Unknown Author:  ("Impact of Global Warming" 6) Example: [T]his region has "more readily accessible climatic data and more comprehensive programs to monitor and study environmental change . . ." ("Impact of Global Warming" 6).

Reference List

Electronic Journal Article Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current Conditions and Future Directions.”  Social Work and Society: The International Online-Only Journal  6.2 (2008): n. pag. Web. 20 May 2009.

Print Journal Bagchi, Alaknanda. "Conflicting Nationalisms: The Voice of the Subaltern in Mahasweta Devi's Bashai Tudu."  Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature  15.1 (1996): 41-50. Print.

Book Gleick, James.  Chaos: Making a New Science . New York: Penguin, 1987. Print.

*Examples taken from the Purdue OWL MLA Guide  

Footnote or Endnote

Known author: william faulkner, absalom, absalom (new york: vintage books, 1990), 271., unknown author: economies of signs & space (london: sage publications, 1994), 241-51., electronic journals, known author: henry e. bent, “professionalization of the ph.d. degree,” college composition and communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 141, accessed december 5, 2008, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1978286., unknown author: “professionalization of the ph.d. degree,” college composition and communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 141, accessed december 5, 2008, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1978286., electronic journal article.

Bent, Henry E. "Professionalization of the Ph.D. Degree.” College Composition and Communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 0-145. Accessed December 5, 2008. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1978286.

Print Journal

MacDonald, Susan Peck. “The Erasure of Language.” College Composition and Communication 58, no. 4 (2007): 585-625.

Danziger, Susan. Slicing up the Pie: Getting a Bigger Half. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2004.

*Examples from the Purdue Owl Chicago Guide  

Many of your assignments require use of both direct quotes and paraphrases. Both quotes and paraphrases must be cited. 

Direct quotes are word-for-word quotations. Cite them with quotation marks and an in-text citation . 

   e.g., The Gettyburg Address  opens "Four score and seven years ago" (Lincoln, 1863, p. #). 

Paraphrases  restate someone else's ideas in your own words. Cite with an in-text citation .

   e.g.,   The Gettysburg Address opens by looking to past decades (Lincoln, 1863, p. #). 

Citation managers  format references in the style you choose (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago).

IU students have free access to several citation managers (i.e., "bibliographic software").

NOTE: Always check the accuracy of citations created through these tools. They can be very helpful, but may make mistakes.

Citation Managers at IU

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Search@uw is a good place to start your research. use this search box to find books, peer-reviewed articles, videos, and more. after you search, you can use filters to narrow your search..

Advanced Search       Databases       Journal Search      My Search@UW Account      Search@UW Basics

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Brainfuse provides writing support for essays, papers, and research projects, as well as live tutoring 24/7 in a variety of subjects., citation basics, this guide gives a quick overview on the basics of citing with mla and apa., libkey, a browser extension, links your search results directly to full-text articles from the stout library. you can continue using your favorite search tools while accessing the full-text instantly., graduate student library guide, this guide is designed for grad students, providing helpful tips on finding theses and dissertations, navigating literature reviews, and giving an overview of citation management tools., the stout librarians are here to help, we enjoy research, we know the library resources, and we want to help you succeed. save time and ask a librarian.

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How do I cite a work accessed through Wayback Machine ?

Wayback Machine is an archive of websites that lives on the Internet Archive ’s site, so you would treat the Internet Archive as the container of the archived web page you view. Include the archived web page’s information in container 1 of your entry. In container 2, include Internet Archive in the Title of Container element and the URL that Wayback Machine provides for the archived page in the Location element:

Collazo, Julie Schwietert. “Cuban Quimbombo (Afro-Cuban Okra).” The Latin Kitchen , 25 Feb. 2014. Internet Archive , web.archive.org/web/20180324130552/http:// thelatinkitchen.com:80/blogs/kitchen/cuban-quimbombo-afro-cuban-okra.

For information on citing other types of archived works, see our posts on citing artifacts in digital archives and citing materials in physical archives and collections . 

U.S. Constitution.net

How to cite this site – the u.s. constitution online – usconstitution.net, how to cite this site.

Jump to: Citing the Constitution

It is very important when writing a paper for a school project (at any level, from elementary school to graduate school) to properly cite your sources. Where did you find your information? Citations are placed in the text as footnotes or endnotes, and/or placed at the end of your work in a bibliography. This page will handle a few different possibilities. The first is to answer the question “How do I cite a page on this site?” or, as I like to say, “How to cite the site.”

There are two main areas that someone might wish to cite on this site. The first is one of the pages found on the site. Several are simply electronic copies of historical documents, while others are research pages or opinion pages. You should be able to discern which is which pretty easily. Unless the information is a copy of a historical document, and unless otherwise noted, everything here is written by the Webmaster, Steve Mount.

Here is a standard way to cite an HTML page published on the Internet, according to the Columbia Guide to Online Style :

• Mount, Steve. “Constitutional Topic: Martial Law.” USConstitution.net. 30 Nov 2001. http://www.usconstitution.net/consttop_mlaw.html (3 Dec 2001)

Specifically, the data is as follows: Author, Title, Site, Modification Date (found at the bottom of every page), URL, and the date the page was accessed. The two dates are critical because of the changeable nature of the Web.

The next citation uses the APA format. This standard comes from the American Psychological Association, and is often used in psychology and other social sciences:

• Mount, S. (2010). Constitutional topic: due process. Retrieved February 23, 2011 from http://www.usconstitution.net/consttop_duep.html

Specifically, the data is as follows: Author, Modification Year (found at the bottom of every page), page title, the date the page was accessed, and the URL.

Finally, the MLA style is often used. This style comes from The Modern Language Association. With this style, citations are noted in the text and full references are given in a Works Cited list at the end of the paper.

• Inline: (Mount)
• Works Cited: Mount, Steve. “Constitutional Topic: The Census.” USConstitution.net . 3 Jan. 2011. 27 Feb. 2011 .

Specifically, the data is as follows: Author, Title, Site, Modification Date, thee date the page was accessed, and URL.

The second source of information is this site’s Message Boards. The primary information available in the Message Boards is opinion. Because the opinions are those of the posters, the citation of a message needs to include the name or handle of the poster. Here is an example, in the Columbia Style, for a posting from the Classic Boards on this site:

• Ian. “Re: Question regarding Law.” 2 Dec 2001. USConstitution.net Q&A Board. http://www.usconstitution.net/cgi-bin/wwwbmsg.cgi?const&001280.wwb (3 Dec 2001)

The data is as follows: Poster, Subject, Date Posted, Board Name, URL, and date accessed.

All posts created after November 2003 used the new messaging software. Here is an example for a posting using the new software:

• Andy. “Re: Impeach Scalia?” 5 Feb 2004. Debate Archives. http://www.usconstitution.net/yabb/YaBB.cgi?board=debarch;action=display;num=1077548457 (25 Feb 2004)

Citing the U.S. Constitution

Another common question involves how to cite the Constitution itself. There are two forms, a long form and a short form. In a legal document, the short form will suffice in all instances, whereas in a non-legal paper, the long form should be used once, and the short form can be used thereafter.

• “The Constitution of the United States,” Article 1, Section 8, Clause 5.
• “The Constitution of the United States,” Amendment 5.

Short Form:

• U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 5.
• U.S. Const. am. 5.

In place of the “§” symbol, the abbreviation “sect.” can be used. In a paper dealing primarily with the Constitution, there is no need to mention “U.S. Const.”