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MLA Formatting and Style Guide

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In-Text Citations

Resources on using in-text citations in MLA style

Works Cited Page

Resources on writing an MLA style works cited page, including citation formats

Other MLA Resources

The Great Depression

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• Great Depression Presidents
• The New Deal
• Great Depression Historical Footage
• Music of the 1930s
• Cite Sources

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Online Citation Manuals

• AP Stylebook (Associated Press) This link opens in a new window Features the updated version of the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law used by journalists. The stylebook provides grammar, punctuation, usage, and journalistic writing guidelines. The online version includes Topical Guides, Ask the Editor, and the AP Blog. NOTE: Permits only ten simultaneous users. Please log off when finished.
• Chicago Manual of Style Online (The University of Chicago) This link opens in a new window Features formatting and documentation rules for the 16th (2010) and 17th (2017) editions of the Chicago Manual of Style. This site includes the Citation Quick Guide, Chicago Style Q & A, and related resources.
• MLA Handbook Plus (Modern Language Association) (VALE) This link opens in a new window Provides access to the online version of the 9th edition of the MLA Handbook. The site includes practice exercises, tutorials, and the MLA Guide to Undergraduate Research in Literature and MLA Guide to Digital Literacy .

Citation Style Web Sites

The following Websites provide formatting and documentation rules for various citation styles.

• APA Formatting and Style Guide (6th Edition): The OWL at Purdue
• APA Formatting and Style Guide (7th Edition): The OWL at Purdue
• APA Style (6th Edition): Frequently Asked Questions
• APA Style (7th Edition): Style and Grammar Guidelines
• APA Style Blog
• Ask the MLA
• Associated Press Stylebook: Ask the Editor
• Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition: The OWL at Purdue
• Chicago Manual of Style Online
• Citing Medicine: The NLM Style Guide for Authors, Editors, and Publishers
• Formatting in Sociology (ASA Style): The OWL at Purdue
• MLA Formatting and Style Guide: The OWL at Purdue
• MLA Style Center: Writing Resources from the Modern Language Association of America
• Resources for Documenting Sources in the Disciplines: The OWL at Purdue
• Scientific Style and Format Online, 8th Edition
• Turabian Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations

Citation Style Brochures

The following brochure provides information regarding documenting sources in various citation styles, including APA, MLA, Chicago style, and more. 

• Resources for Documenting Sources: Citation Style Websites and Manuals

Citation Style Guides Gallery

ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information

Service Desk (First Floor) Non-circulating

AMA Handbook of Business Writing

Electronic Resource

AMA Manual of Style (10th Edition)

(American Medical Association) Service Desk (First Floor) Non-circulating

AMA Manual of Style (11th Edition)

(American Medical Association) Electronic Resource

APA Style Guide to Electronic References, Sixth Edition

Electronic Resource Due to Federal Copyright Law, users may print one copy for their personal use only.

American Sociological Association Style Guide (7th Edition)

American sociological association style guide.

The Associated Press Stylebook 2020

The Associated Press Stylebook 2022-2024

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation

The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th Edition

A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (Turabian manual)

Reference Collection (Second Floor)

MLA Handbook

(8th Edition) Service Desk (First Floor) Non-circulating

MLA Handbook (9th Edition)

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA)

(6th Edition) Service Desk (First Floor) Non-circulating

(7th Edition) Service Desk (First Floor) Non-circulating

Scientific Style and Format: The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers (Council of Science Editors)

Academic integrity at kean university.

Kean University's Academic Integrity Policy explains the importance placed on intellectual honesty, personal ethics and values for all members of the Kean academic community.

Plagiarism is one type of academic integrity violation, and it has very serious consequences. In order to avoid committing plagiarism, the work presented by an individual must truly represent the work of that person, and such work must acknowledge the source of any words, ideas, data, images, music, etc. that have been incorporated into a paper, presentation, Web site, multimedia project, and so on. 

Citations to the original source material must accompany word-for-word quotes enclosed in quotation marks, block quotations, and paraphrased material (ideas that you have put into your own words).

While you gather source material for your research projects, make sure that you keep track of the information you will need in order to acknowledge your sources.

EndNote Online

EndNote Online will help you to organize your source information and then to create bibliographies in your required citation styles (such as APA or MLA).

Find out more about EndNote Online, including how to sign up for your own free account

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• URL: https://libguides.kean.edu/c.php?g=1356714

• Locations and Hours
• UCLA Library
• Research Guides

English Composition 2: Approaches to University Writing (Fall 2023, Ketai)

• Citing and Writing
• Getting Started
• Article Databases
• Reference Sources

Citation Style Guides - Online

Citation style guides - print, annotated bibliographies, writing a paper get started here..

Sometimes you need to narrow or broaden your topic.

• What is a Research Paper? This link leads you to the OWL at Purdue , an excellent website with information on all aspects of writing a paper. You do NOT need to click on the GREEN Start button to use the website.
• How to Read a Call Number Do you wonder how to read a call number to find a book on the shelf? Check this page out for tips on how to do it.
• How to Read a Citation Can't tell the difference between a citation to a book or an article ? Check this page out for tips on how citations work.

Avoiding Plagiarism

See the Citing Sources Research Guide Section on Avoiding Plagiarism for more information.

• UCLA Academic Integrity (UCLA Dean of Students)

UCLA has a campuswide license to Turnitin.com. Some professors ask their students to turn their papers in electronically and the text is submitted to Turnitin.com where it is compared with a vast database of other student papers, online articles, general Web pages, and other sources. Turnitin.com then produces a report for the instructor indicating whether the paper was plagiarized and if so, how much. To access this resource, log in to MyUCLA and click on the Turnitin.com link in the left-hand column under "MyUCLA Features." There will only be a link if your professor is using Turnitin.com.

• Quick Guide to Turnitin.com

When citing sources be sure to use the proper citation style for the course. Below are links to ONLINE summarized citation rules from some of the more popular style guides:

• APA Style and Grammar Guidelines from American Psychological Association
• APA (American Psychological Association) Via OWL at Purdue Use the examples on this page. You DO NOT need to click the green START button to use the website.
• AAA (American Anthropological Association)
• MLA Style: Using MLA Format A quick guide to MLA formats based on the 9th edition of the MLA Handbook.
• MLA (Modern Language Association) Via OWL at Purdue Use the examples on this page. You DO NOT need to click the green START button and use the website.
• Chicago Manual of Style-Quick Guide Via University of Chicago Press.
• Chicago Manual of Style via OWL at Purdue. Use the examples on this page. You DO NOT need to click the green START button to use the website.
• Turabian Quick Guide Based on the Chicago Manual of Style.
• Guide to Citing Maps and Atlases
• Citing Film, Video and Online Media (MLA Style) Guide from UCB Media Center. Consult latest edition of the MLA handbook for any changes to formatting.

For a general introduction to academic citation and intellectual property, see Citing Sources .

For more detail, consult the complete printed style manuals, available in many campus libraries:

Preparing an annotated bibliography is often the first step in writing a research paper. Sometimes it is a stand-alone assignment. Annotations usually include both description and some evaluative comment. See Purdue University's OWL (Online Writing Lab) page (linked below) for more help in preparing an annotated bibliography.

• Annotated Bibliographies--Definition and Format This page from the OWL at Purdue provides basic information on annotated bibliography structure, with links to other parts of the OWL website.
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• URL: https://guides.library.ucla.edu/ketai23

Research Support: MLA Citation

• How to Paraphrase
• How to make a Works Cited
• How to format In-text Citations
• How to write an Annotated Bibliography
• How to Make a Bibliography
• How to format Footnotes
• NoodleTools
• Databases This link opens in a new window
• All Library Resources This link opens in a new window

The English department requires citation according to the MLA style. You must cite sources in your work and list them in a Works Cited page. When using MLA:

• Use a citation organization system like  NoodleTools  to keep track of your research. 
• Save all the information about the source : author’s name, title of book or website, page numbers, etc. 
• Create a works cited list  at the end of your paper, using the citation information you recorded when you were taking notes. 
• Provide an in-text citation for all quotations, paraphrases, and summaries .

Research Organization and Citation

NoodleTools  

Research organization with bibliographies and notecards. google sso:  login with your fwcd gmail account., • noodletools quick guide for students, • tutorials on using noodletools  (scroll down on the page), fwcd honor code, the honor code at fwcd, helpful links.

MLA Formatting and Style Guide (Purdue OWL)

Mla sample paper (purdue owl), online resources and databases.

MLA Handbook. 9th ed., New York City, Modern Language Association of America, 2021.

"MLA Style Introduction." Purdue Online Writing Lab, Purdue University, 2023, owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_style_introduction.html. Accessed 25 Oct. 2023.

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• Last Updated: Oct 30, 2023 12:03 PM
• URL: https://fwcd.libguides.com/research

Proquest Statistical Insight Workshop

• Databases, Journals, and Articles
• Books, Theses, and Dissertations

Research Assistance

• Political Science/Public Administration Web Resources
• Election Information

Librarian for Political Science, Government Information, Maps, and Patents/Trademarks

Students, staff, or faculty are welcome to visit my office any time.  

I recommend scheduling any face to face meeting in advance. Please also feel free to call or e-mail me whenever you might need some assistance.  You may also find the following resources helpful.

• Ask a Librarian This link opens in a new window Need help? Not sure where to start? Get in touch with a librarian.
• Document Delivery This link opens in a new window Resource/s you need unavailable at TTU Libraries? Request through Document Delivery/ILLiad.

Additional Research Tools

• APA Formatting and Style Guide - Purdue OWL Purdue University Online Writing Lab guide for APA (American Psychological Association), 6th Edition, style formatting and citations.
• Endnote Basic This link opens in a new window A web-based service designed to help students and researchers through the process of writing a research paper.
• MLA Style Guide This link opens in a new window A guide from Purdue University on using MLA guidelines in research papers, and citing all sources from a single book to government documents.
• << Previous: Books, Theses, and Dissertations
• Next: Political Science/Public Administration Web Resources >>
• Last Updated: Nov 3, 2023 4:18 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.ttu.edu/c.php?g=1360662

Citation Guide

• What is a Citation?
• Citation Generator

Overview: MLA Citation Syle

Mla book citation, mla academic journal and periodical (magazine & newspaper) citation, mla website citation, mla in-text citations.

• Chicago/Turabian Style
• Paraphrasing and Quoting
• Examples of Plagiarism
• What is a Bibliography?
• Writing Center
• Writer's Reference Center
• Helpful Tutorials

Ninth Edition

The Modern Language Association (MLA) Manual of Style is commonly used in the Arts and Humanities. The Ninth Edition replaced the Eighth edition in 2021. The Ninth edition did not make many changes to the formatting requirements of bibliographic citations or in-text citations. 

• MLA 9th Edition Formatting & Style Guide (Purdue OWL) MLA video by Purdue OWL
• MLA Handbook Plus 9th Edition Book Contents: Formatting Your Research Project, Margins and Text Formatting, Running Head and Page Numbers, and more. more... less... Free web access.
• MLA Style 101 Course Explore the MLA template of core elements with this introductory course. Each of the nine videos highlight one of the elements—like author, version, or publisher—and provides guidance on how to find publication information in various types of sources. more... less... Must be on Campus to access and view.

Explore MLA Handbook Plus from Modern Language Association on Vimeo .

Book Citation Basic Format:

AuthorLastName, FirstName.  Book Title.  Publisher, Year.

• Note on Capitalization of the Title:  Most words of the title are capitalized, including all nouns, pronouns (e.g., Our and That), adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions (e.g., Because and After). Do not capitalize articles (e.g., a, and, the), prepositions (e.g., of, in, and for), coordinating conjunctions (e.g., and, but, or) and the infinitive "to" (e.g., to Move). The first word of the title and subtitle (if present) are capitalized. 
• Subtitle:  Use a colon (:) to separate the main title from the subtitle. For example:  Charles Dickens: The Definitive Collection. If the title contains a question mark or exclamation point, do not include a colon. For example: The Greatest Adventurer? Sir Ernest Shackleton's Doomed Voyage.
• Note on the Publisher: In most cases, MLA8 does require the city of publication. Only include the city if the book was published before 1900, if the publisher has offices in multiple countries, or if the publisher is likely to be unknown to a North American Readership. See the McMillan example below (an unknown publisher in this case). Use this format when including the city of publication: City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Date.
• Hanging Indent: Every line after the first line should be indented, called a hanging indent. (Found under "paragraph" > "indent" in Word.)

McMillan, Montague.  A History of Limestone University: 1845-1970.  Columbia, SC, R. L. Bryan Company, 1970,

Turabian, Kate.  Student's Guide to Writing College Papers . The University of Chicago Press, 2010.

Example with a subtitle: 

• The subtitle always follows a colon.

Levitin, Daniel.  A Field Guide to Lies: Critical Thinking in the Information Age.  Dutton, 2016.

Example of a book in translation: 

Mathiez, Albert.  The French Revolution. Translated by Catherine Phillips, Grosset & Dunlap, 1964.

Example of a book in an edition other than the first: 

Jones, Doug.  A Handbook of Photography . 5th ed., Rogers, 2008.

I. Journal Article Basic Format:

AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article."  Title of Journal , Volume, Issue, Year, Pages.

B. Electronic:

AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article."  Title of Journal , Volume, Issue, Year, Pages.  Database,  DOI/URL

• Italicize the  Journal Title,  and  Database .
• DOI: Always include the DOI (Digital Object Identifier), when available. Not all articles have a DOI. Use this formula: https://doi.org/xxxxx
• Include a permanent link (permalink) for an electronic article only if the article does not have a DOI.
• Page Numbers: "pp."=pages and "p."=page. Include the full range of pages on your bibliography. Cite individual pages in-text.

Examples of Journal Articles from a database:

Bauer, Christine, and Christine Strauss. “Educating Artists in Management - An Analysis of Art Education Programmes in DACH Region.”  Cogent Education , vol. 2, no. 1, Cogent, Dec. 2015, https://doi:10.1080/2331186X.2015.1045217.

Cazé, Antoine. “Emily Dickinson and the Question of ‘Giving Death.’”  Textual Practice: Nineteenth-Century American Literature and the Philosophical , vol. 33, no. 10, Routledge, Nov. 2019, pp. 1787–800, https://doi:10.1080/0950236X.2019.1665928.

Green, Lucy. “Popular Music Education in and for Itself, and for ‘other’ Music: Current Research in the Classroom.”  International Journal of Music Education , vol. 24, no. 2, SAGE Publications, 2016, pp. 101–18, https://doi:10.1177/0255761406065471.

II. Magazine Article Basic Format:

AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article."  Title of Magazine , Volume, Issue, Date, Pages.

AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article."  Title of Magazine , Volume, Issue, Date, Pages.  Database,  DOI/URL

• A published magazine article follows a similar format as an academic journal.
• Include the month, year and day, when available (see below examples). Shorten months to three letters and use the day, month, year format.
• If you are citing a magazine article that you read on the magazine's website, include the URL. Sometimes, online-only editions will not include a volume, issue number, or page numbers.
• Access dates are not required for stable sources, but they may be optionally given for any online source. Access dates are required for sources that are likely to change.

Berry, Barnett. “Teaching, Learning, and Caring in the Post-COVID Era.”  Phi Delta Kappan , vol. 102, no. 1, Sept. 2020, pp. 14–17.  EBSCOhost , https://doi:10.1177/0031721720956840.

Har'el, Alma. "Why Women's History Should Be Everyone's History."  Time,  5 Mar. 2020. https://time.com/5795675/documenting-100-women-of-the-year/ 

Raine, Michael. “Demystifying Streaming Playlists.”  Canadian Musician , vol. 42, no. 1, Jan. 2020, pp. 38–41.  EBSCOhost , search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=url,ip,cookie,uid&db=a9h&AN=141371924&scope=site.

III. Newspaper Article Basic Format:

In general, follow the same format as the magazine. Include the city of publication in [brackets] for local newspapers that do not otherwise include the city of publication in the title. Note: Online editions of newspapers may not include the original page numbers. 

Shain, Andy. "Fire ravages the historic Babcock Building in the BullStreet District."  Post and Courier [Charleston, SC] , 16 Sep. 2020, p. A16.

Lustgarten, Abrahm. "How Climate Migration Will Reshape America: Millions will be displaced. Where will they go?"  New York Times.15 Sep. 2020. 

For web-based materials that are potentially unstable in format, provide as much information as possible. Note that if you access a stable,  published source online, like a magazine or newspaper article, cite it according to the rules for periodicals above. A source like a blog or a Wikipedia article is not a stable source. It may either change overtime or be moved to a new location. In general, it is best to avoid citing sources that do not include an author and date information.

• Include an accessed date that indicated when you used the source
• Include the title and author information, as available
• Include a date when possible Since many web sources are not formally published, you may need to include a copyright date located at the bottom of the website
• Include a URL

Basic Format

AuthorLast, First. "Page/Article Title."  Website Title,  Date of Publication, URL, Date Accessed [Day Month Year].

Treilhard, John B. "Chaucer the Love Poet: A Study in Historical Criticism."  Medievalists.net , 1 Apr. 2017, https://www.medievalists.net/2015/01/chaucer-love-poet-study-historical-criticism/, Accessed 15 Aug. 2018.

Ferlazzo, Larry, "Tuesday's Must-Read Articles About School Reopening."  Larry Ferlazzo's Website of the Day.  14 Sep. 2020. https://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2020/09/14/tuesdays-must-read-articles-about-school-reopening/, Accessed 15 Sep. 2020.

Basic In-Text Citation Format

(AuthorLast Page #)

• When referencing a source, provide the last name(s) of the author(s) and page number (or page number range) of the reference in parentheses. The reference must be included as an item on the Works Cited page. 
• Place the citation after the sentence, but before any period or other punctuation mark. If the author's name is mentioned in the sentence, only include the page number in the parentheses.
• * If you include a block quotation in your paper, place the in-text citation after the final period of the quotation.

Sentence text referring to the source (Smith 62).

OR: According to Smith, . . . (62). 

The above reference is to a work included in the Works Cited page by an author named Smith. If there happened to be two authors named Smith on the Works Cited page, for this example, provide an additional initial or name. Thus, (A. Smith 51) and (N. Smith 62) would separate an Allison Smith from a Nelson Smith.

Classic Works:

When citing a classic work for which many various editions exist, provide a chapter reference in addition to the page number.

(Author Page #; Chapter #)

Smith, Adam.  An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.  London: Harriman House, 2007.

For the above entry on the Works Cited page, provide an in-text citation referencing the chapter and page number:

(Smith 45; ch. 1).

The  Purdue OWL  is an excellent source for MLA Citation Style information. The Purdue University's Online Writing Lab offers comprehensive information, guidelines and examples.

MLA Research Paper Example

• View a sample MLA paper from Purdue OWL
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• URL: https://libguides.limestone.edu/citation

• Boston University Libraries

IR 566 History of Deportation & Border Security in the Americas

Citing your sources.

• Deportation & Border Security in the Americas
• Books, Articles and Databases
• Newspapers, Film/Video, Images, Sound

Proper citation is an essential aspect of scholarship. Citing properly allows your reader or audience to locate the materials you have used. Most importantly, citations give credit to the authors of quoted or consulted information.

For detailed instructions on how to cite within the text of your paper, please consult a style manual listed below. Please also note: some of the resources below do not cover every possibility you might encounter when trying to cite your sources. For this reason, it is suggested that you consult a style manual to create your bibliography.

Here are some  easy web options .

Chicago Style Online

Chicago-Style Citation Quick Guide

Chicago-style source citations come in two varieties: Notes and bibliography and Author-date.

The  Notes and Bibliography  system is preferred by many working in the humanities—including literature, history, and the arts. In this system, sources are cited in numbered footnotes or endnotes. Each note corresponds to a raised (superscript) number in the text. Sources are also usually listed in a separate bibliography. The notes and bibliography system can accommodate a wide variety of sources, including unusual ones that don’t fit neatly into the author-date system.

The  Author-Date  system is more common in the sciences and social sciences. In this system, sources are briefly cited in the text, usually in parentheses, by author’s last name and year of publication. Each in-text citation matches up with an entry in a reference list, where full bibliographic information is provided.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

• Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab) MLA Style Introduction

Need help? 

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