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Cite a Website in MLA7
Don't let plagiarism errors spoil your paper, consider your source's credibility. ask these questions:, contributor/author.
- Has the author written several articles on the topic, and do they have the credentials to be an expert in their field?
- Can you contact them? Do they have social media profiles?
- Have other credible individuals referenced this source or author?
- Book: What have reviews said about it?
- What do you know about the publisher/sponsor? Are they well-respected?
- Do they take responsibility for the content? Are they selective about what they publish?
- Take a look at their other content. Do these other articles generally appear credible?
- Does the author or the organization have a bias? Does bias make sense in relation to your argument?
- Is the purpose of the content to inform, entertain, or to spread an agenda? Is there commercial intent?
- Are there ads?
- When was the source published or updated? Is there a date shown?
- Does the publication date make sense in relation to the information presented to your argument?
- Does the source even have a date?
- Was it reproduced? If so, from where?
- If it was reproduced, was it done so with permission? Copyright/disclaimer included?
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MLA7 Citation Generator
Keep all of your citations in one safe place
Create an account to save all of your citations
Don't let plagiarism errors spoil your paper
Consider your source's credibility. ask these questions:, contributor/author.
- Has the author written several articles on the topic, and do they have the credentials to be an expert in their field?
- Can you contact them? Do they have social media profiles?
- Have other credible individuals referenced this source or author?
- Book: What have reviews said about it?
- What do you know about the publisher/sponsor? Are they well-respected?
- Do they take responsibility for the content? Are they selective about what they publish?
- Take a look at their other content. Do these other articles generally appear credible?
- Does the author or the organization have a bias? Does bias make sense in relation to your argument?
- Is the purpose of the content to inform, entertain, or to spread an agenda? Is there commercial intent?
- Are there ads?
- When was the source published or updated? Is there a date shown?
- Does the publication date make sense in relation to the information presented to your argument?
- Does the source even have a date?
- Was it reproduced? If so, from where?
- If it was reproduced, was it done so with permission? Copyright/disclaimer included?
What You Need to Know About MLA Formatting
Writing a paper soon? If your assignment requires the use of Modern Language Association (MLA) style, then you're in luck! EasyBib® has tools to help you create citations for over 50 source types in this style, as well as a guide to show you how an MLA paper should be formatted. Review the guide to learn how to format a paper's title page, paragraphs, margins, quotations, abbreviations, numbers, tables, and more! There are even tips on editing, as well as on the type of paper you choose to print your paper on—yes, it's that comprehensive!
A Handy Guide for Using APA Format
Ever wonder how to cite a book with no author in APA style? Do you know how graphics should be formatted in a paper? Thanks to our EasyBib® guide on citing and formatting in American Psychological Association (APA) style, you don't have to guess anymore! We break down the guidelines for you into separate, digestible chunks of information that range from the ways to present headers, to use of abbreviations, to how to format titles for citations. There are also several helpful citation examples for you to review. Read up and start learning today!
Chicago Style Simplified
Jump start your knowledge of the Chicago Manual of Style (or Turabian style) with our structured EasyBib® guides. Each one will teach you the structure of a Chicago-style citation, followed by a real-life citation example for you to examine. Begin with our "“"Quick Guide" on citing common source types (books, magazines, newspapers, and websites). Then, discover why we have footnotes and how they work, or choose a "How to Cite" guide based on the source type you're using (e.g. photo, film, tweet, journal, blog, video on YouTube, conference paper, etc.). You're in charge of your own learning path!
Student & Teacher Blog for Better Papers
Keep your citing skills current and your writing skills fresh by reading our weekly EasyBib® Blog. You'll find articles about citing interesting source types (know how to cite a meme?), the latest updates to our tools and services, writing tips and tricks, and more! Aside from content that students (or any writer) could benefit from, we also feature posts written by educators, for educators! They discuss writing and information literacy pedagogy, present resource recommendation lists, and generally share their experience and knowledge.
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Mla style (7th edition).
MLA is a citation style from the Modern Language Association and is commonly used in the humanities. When using MLA, you will cite sources both within the text (in-text citations) and at the end of the document (Works Cited page).
In-Text Citations
MLA requires citing with the author’s last name . In-text citations can appear within the sentence or at the end of the sentence.
In Williams and Jones , the data shows that citations are important.
The data shows that citations are important (Williams and Jones) .
For in-text citations in specific contexts, see our headings below:
Direct Quotations
Page numbers are required for direct quotations from sources that have numbered pages, such as books or journals. This number appears in parentheses at the end of the sentence.
According to Smith , “It is better to overcite than undercite” (2) .
Research requires the frequent use of citations: “It is better to overcite than undercite” (Smith 2) .
Multiple Authors
When a source has two to three authors, write out all of the authors' names and combine them with "and."
William, Jones, and Smith find that citations are important.
The data shows that citations are important (Williams, Jones, and Smith) .
When a source has four or more authors, you can either write out all of the authors' names or use only the first author's name and “et al.” (meaning "and everyone else"). Write "et al." in lowercase, place a period after "al." and do not place a comma between the author's name and "et al."
Saal et al. argues that historic homes should be preserved.
Historic homes should be preserved (Saal et al.) .
When no author is listed, you have two options:
1. Use the publisher name. When citing a webpage, the publisher will appear at the bottom of the website next to the copyright date.
The data shows that citations are important (Organization for Research) .
2. Use the shortened title of the source. Note: a source without a named author or publisher might not be reliable.
The data shows that citations are important (“Using Sources”) .
Multiple Sources
When citing multiple different sources in the same citation, list them in alphabetical order (like on your Works Cited page) and separate them with semicolons.
The data shows that citations are important (Aeron; Coldwater et al.; Williams and Jones) .
When you have two or more authors with the same last name, include their first initial in your citations to differentiate the sources.
The data shows that citations are important (R. Aeron; A. Aeron) .
When you have two or more sources with the same author(s), include the shortened title of the source to differentiate them. This title will appear in parentheses at the end of the sentence. Italicize book titles and use quotation marks for article titles.
Aeron argues that citations are important ("Research") .
The data shows that citations are important (Aeron, "Research") .
Works Cited Page
The Works Cited page lists the full citation of each source used in your paper. Follow these general notes on MLA format:
- Start your Works Cited on a new page.
- Write "Works Cited" at the top of the page and center it, with no bold or italics.
- Highlight all of the citations on your Bibliography.
- Right-click and select “Paragraph.”
- Under “Indentation,” go to “Special” and select “Hanging” from the drop-down menu.
- Alphabetize sources by the author's last name. If there is no author, alphabetize by the first major word in the title.
- Begin the citation with the author(s). Write the first author's name in inverted order (LastName, FirstName), but write every following author's name in normal order (FirstName LastName).
- "An Article Title Will Look Like This."
- A Book Title Will Look Like This .
- Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., May, Jun., Jul., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.
- End citations by naming the medium of the source ("Print" or "Web"), depending on where the source was published or how you read it.
The information provided in each of your Works Cited citations will be different for each type of source. Here are some examples of Works Cited citations for common types of sources:
Because all of the content in a book is written by the same author(s), you can cite the entire book on your Works Cited, even if you only used information from one chapter or a few pages. If a book has multiple copyright dates, use the most recent.
General Format
AuthorLastName, FirstName. Book Title in Caps and Italics: Subtitle . edition, if applicable. City of Publication:
Publisher Name, year of publication. Medium of Publication.
Example, with No Edition
Lord, Walter. The Night Lives On: The Untold Stories and Secrets Behind the Sinking of the" Unsinkable" Ship—Titanic .
New York: Open Road Media, 2012. Print.
Example, with Edition
Butler, Daniel Allen. "Unsinkable": The Full Story of the RMS Titanic . 2nd ed. Boston: Da Capo Press, 2012. Print.
Article or Chapter in Edited Book
Edited books contain articles or chapters written by different authors. Thus, your Works Cited must list each individual article or chapter that you used in your research.
AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article/Chapter in Quotation Marks." Book Title in Caps and Italics: Subtitle .
Ed. EditorFirstName LastName. City of Publication: Publisher Name, year of publication. Page range of
article/chapter. Medium of Publication.
Example, with One Book Editor
Beesley, Lawrence. "The Loss of the S. S. Titanic, Its Story, and Its Lessons." The Story of the Titanic: As Told
by Its Survivors . Ed. Jack Winocour. New York: Dover Publications, 1960. 1-110. Print.
Example, with Two Book Editors
Middleton, Peter, and Tim Woods. "Textual Memory: The Making of the Titanic's Archive." The Titanic in Myth
and Memory: Representations in Visual and Literary Culture . Eds. Tim Bergfelder and Sarah Street.
New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004. 63-72. Print.
Journal Article
AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article in Quotation Marks." Journal Title in Caps and Italics volume#.issue#
(year of publication): page range of article. Medium of Publication.
Frey, Bruno S., David A. Savage, and Benno Torgler. "Interaction of Natural Survival Instincts and Internalized Social
Norms Exploring the Titanic and Lusitania Disasters." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 107.11 (2010):
4862-4865. Web.
Newspaper Article
Provide the day, month, and year that the newspaper article was published. Abbreviate the month according to the following standards:
AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Article in Quotation Marks." Newspaper Title in Caps and Italics Day Month
Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.
Broad, William J. "A New Look at Nature's Role in the Titanic 's Sinking: The Iceberg Was Only Part of It."
The New York Times 9 Apr. 2012. Web.
Provide the day, month, and year that the webpage was published and that you last visited the webpage. If the webpage has no publication information, use the abbrevation "n.d." for "no date." Abbreviate the months according to the standards listed at the top of this section.
The title of the website is usually located in the top left corner of every page. The website publisher will be located at the bottom of the page, next to the copyright date.
AuthorLastName, FirstName. "Title of Webpage in Quotation Marks." Website Title in Italics . Publisher of Website,
Day Month Year of Publication. Medium of Publication. Day Month Year of Last Access.
Example, with Publication Date
Lorenzi, Rossella. "Steering Error Sank the Titanic , Says Author." Discovery News . Discovery Communications,
LLC, 23 Sept. 2010. Web. 8 Dec. 2015.
Example, with No Author or Publication Date
"Titanic." History . A+E Networks Corporation, n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2015.
Style and Format
In MLA, quotations that extend more than 4 lines should be formatted as block quotations. This means the quotation will have no quotation marks and be completely indented one inch from the rest of the paragraph. For example:
Many scholars continue to prefer humans over computers:
The human brain, with its flexibility and capacity to imagine, is still superior in many ways to the electronic model. The computer is never tired or preoccupied or careless, so it is wonderful at remembering and observing rules. But it doesn’t have the imagination of even a very young human brain—which not only can forget the rules, but can find in them loopholes and options. Electronic intelligence can process information like a house afire, but it still can’t think . (LaRocque 52)
MLA also had standards for formatting your paper. The first page should include your name, your professor's name, your course number, and your due date in the upper left corner. The due date will be written in inverted order, with the day coming before the month. An example can be seen at Purdue OWL .
Julie Smith Dr. Sally Harris ENG 111 7 November 2013
All of the headers in your paper should have your last name and page number in the upper right corner.
Purdue Online Writing Lab College of Liberal Arts
MLA Formatting and Style Guide
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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.
MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook (9 th ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page.
The following overview should help you better understand how to cite sources using MLA 9 th edition, including how to format the Works Cited page and in-text citations.
Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in MLA. See also our MLA vidcast series on the Purdue OWL YouTube Channel .
Creating a Works Cited list using the ninth edition
MLA is a style of documentation that may be applied to many different types of writing. Since texts have become increasingly digital, and the same document may often be found in several different sources, following a set of rigid rules no longer suffices.
Thus, the current system is based on a few guiding principles, rather than an extensive list of specific rules. While the handbook still describes how to cite sources, it is organized according to the process of documentation, rather than by the sources themselves. This gives writers a flexible method that is near-universally applicable.
Once you are familiar with the method, you can use it to document any type of source, for any type of paper, in any field.
Here is an overview of the process:
When deciding how to cite your source, start by consulting the list of core elements. These are the general pieces of information that MLA suggests including in each Works Cited entry. In your citation, the elements should be listed in the following order:
- Title of source.
- Title of container,
- Other contributors,
- Publication date,
Each element should be followed by the corresponding punctuation mark shown above. Earlier editions of the handbook included the place of publication and required different punctuation (such as journal editions in parentheses and colons after issue numbers) depending on the type of source. In the current version, punctuation is simpler (only commas and periods separate the elements), and information about the source is kept to the basics.
Begin the entry with the author’s last name, followed by a comma and the rest of the name, as presented in the work. End this element with a period.
Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. Routledge, 1994.
Title of source
The title of the source should follow the author’s name. Depending upon the type of source, it should be listed in italics or quotation marks.
A book should be in italics:
Henley, Patricia. The Hummingbird House . MacMurray, 1999.
An individual webpage should be in quotation marks. The name of the parent website, which MLA treats as a "container," should follow in italics:
Lundman, Susan. "How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow, www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html.*
A periodical (journal, magazine, newspaper) article should be in quotation marks:
Bagchi, Alaknanda. "Conflicting Nationalisms: The Voice of the Subaltern in Mahasweta Devi's Bashai Tudu." Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature , vol. 15, no. 1, 1996, pp. 41-50.
A song or piece of music on an album should be in quotation marks. The name of the album should then follow in italics:
Beyoncé. "Pray You Catch Me." Lemonade, Parkwood Entertainment, 2016, www.beyonce.com/album/lemonade-visual-album/.
*The MLA handbook recommends including URLs when citing online sources. For more information, see the “Optional Elements” section below.
Title of container
The eighth edition of the MLA handbook introduced what are referred to as "containers," which are the larger wholes in which the source is located. For example, if you want to cite a poem that is listed in a collection of poems, the individual poem is the source, while the larger collection is the container. The title of the container is usually italicized and followed by a comma, since the information that follows next describes the container.
Kincaid, Jamaica. "Girl." The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories, edited by Tobias Wolff, Vintage, 1994, pp. 306-07.
The container may also be a television series, which is made up of episodes.
“94 Meetings.” Parks and Recreation, created by Greg Daniels and Michael Schur, performance by Amy Poehler, season 2, episode 21, Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, 2010.
The container may also be a website, which contains articles, postings, and other works.
Wise, DeWanda. “Why TV Shows Make Me Feel Less Alone.” NAMI, 31 May 2019, www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone . Accessed 3 June 2019.
In some cases, a container might be within a larger container. You might have read a book of short stories on Google Books , or watched a television series on Netflix . You might have found the electronic version of a journal on JSTOR. It is important to cite these containers within containers so that your readers can find the exact source that you used.
“94 Meetings.” Parks and Recreation , season 2, episode 21, NBC , 29 Apr. 2010. Netflix, www.netflix.com/watch/70152031?trackId=200256157&tctx=0%2C20%2C0974d361-27cd-44de-9c2a-2d9d868b9f64-12120962.
Langhamer, Claire. “Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England.” Historical Journal , vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-96. ProQuest, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966. Accessed 27 May 2009.
Other contributors
In addition to the author, there may be other contributors to the source who should be credited, such as editors, illustrators, translators, etc. If their contributions are relevant to your research, or necessary to identify the source, include their names in your documentation.
Foucault, Michel. Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason. Translated by Richard Howard , Vintage-Random House, 1988.
Woolf, Virginia. Jacob’s Room . Annotated and with an introduction by Vara Neverow, Harcourt, Inc., 2008.
If a source is listed as an edition or version of a work, include it in your citation.
The Bible . Authorized King James Version, Oxford UP, 1998.
Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee. Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students. 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.
If a source is part of a numbered sequence, such as a multi-volume book or journal with both volume and issue numbers, those numbers must be listed in your citation.
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.
Quintilian. Institutio Oratoria. Translated by H. E. Butler, vol. 2, Loeb-Harvard UP, 1980.
The publisher produces or distributes the source to the public. If there is more than one publisher, and they are all are relevant to your research, list them in your citation, separated by a forward slash (/).
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.
Women's Health: Problems of the Digestive System . American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 2006.
Daniels, Greg and Michael Schur, creators. Parks and Recreation . Deedle-Dee Productions and Universal Media Studios, 2015.
Note : The publisher’s name need not be included in the following sources: periodicals, works published by their author or editor, websites whose titles are the same name as their publisher, websites that make works available but do not actually publish them (such as YouTube , WordPress , or JSTOR ).
Publication date
The same source may have been published on more than one date, such as an online version of an original source. For example, a television series might have aired on a broadcast network on one date, but released on Netflix on a different date. When the source has more than one date, it is sufficient to use the date that is most relevant to your writing. If you’re unsure about which date to use, go with the date of the source’s original publication.
In the following example, Mutant Enemy is the primary production company, and “Hush” was released in 1999. Below is a general citation for this television episode:
“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer , created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, Mutant Enemy, 1999 .
However, if you are discussing, for example, the historical context in which the episode originally aired, you should cite the full date. Because you are specifying the date of airing, you would then use WB Television Network (rather than Mutant Enemy), because it was the network (rather than the production company) that aired the episode on the date you’re citing.
“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, episode 10, WB Television Network, 14 Dec. 1999 .
You should be as specific as possible in identifying a work’s location.
An essay in a book or an article in a journal should include page numbers.
Adiche, Chimamanda Ngozi. “On Monday of Last Week.” The Thing around Your Neck, Alfred A. Knopf, 2009, pp. 74-94 .
The location of an online work should include a URL. Remove any "http://" or "https://" tag from the beginning of the URL.
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.
When citing a physical object that you experienced firsthand, identify the place of location.
Matisse, Henri. The Swimming Pool. 1952, Museum of Modern Art, New York .
Optional elements
The ninth edition is designed to be as streamlined as possible. The author should include any information that helps readers easily identify the source, without including unnecessary information that may be distracting. The following is a list of optional elements that can be included in a documented source at the writer’s discretion.
Date of original publication:
If a source has been published on more than one date, the writer may want to include both dates if it will provide the reader with necessary or helpful information.
Erdrich, Louise. Love Medicine. 1984. Perennial-Harper, 1993.
City of publication:
The seventh edition handbook required the city in which a publisher is located, but the eighth edition states that this is only necessary in particular instances, such as in a work published before 1900. Since pre-1900 works were usually associated with the city in which they were published, your documentation may substitute the city name for the publisher’s name.
Thoreau, Henry David. Excursions . Boston, 1863.
Date of access:
When you cite an online source, the MLA Handbook recommends including a date of access on which you accessed the material, since an online work may change or move at any time.
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.
As mentioned above, while the MLA handbook recommends including URLs when you cite online sources, you should always check with your instructor or editor and include URLs at their discretion.
A DOI, or digital object identifier, is a series of digits and letters that leads to the location of an online source. Articles in journals are often assigned DOIs to ensure that the source is locatable, even if the URL changes. If your source is listed with a DOI, use that instead of a URL.
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, doi: 10.1002/tox.20155.
Creating in-text citations using the previous (eighth) edition
Although the MLA handbook is currently in its ninth edition, some information about citing in the text using the older (eighth) edition is being retained. The in-text citation is a brief reference within your text that indicates the source you consulted. It should properly attribute any ideas, paraphrases, or direct quotations to your source, and should direct readers to the entry in the Works Cited list. For the most part, an in-text citation is the author’s name and the page number (or just the page number, if the author is named in the sentence) in parentheses :
When creating in-text citations for media that has a runtime, such as a movie or podcast, include the range of hours, minutes and seconds you plan to reference. For example: (00:02:15-00:02:35).
Again, your goal is to attribute your source and provide a reference without interrupting your text. Your readers should be able to follow the flow of your argument without becoming distracted by extra information.
How to Cite the Purdue OWL in MLA
Entire Website
The Purdue OWL . Purdue U Writing Lab, 2019.
Individual Resources
Contributors' names. "Title of Resource." The Purdue OWL , Purdue U Writing Lab, Last edited date.
The new OWL no longer lists most pages' authors or publication dates. Thus, in most cases, citations will begin with the title of the resource, rather than the developer's name.
"MLA Formatting and Style Guide." The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab. Accessed 18 Jun. 2018.
MLA Citation (7th edition)
- Citing a book
- Citing the Parts of a Books
- Citing a journal or magazine article
- Citing a newspaper article
In Text Citations
Basic website citation, article from a website, work from the web also published in print.
- MLA Resources
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For an overview of the ways to cite electronic information in text in MLA style, see the Purdue OWL , which provides an overview of the basic in text citation formats.
To cite items found on the open Internet, provide as much of the following information as possible. For more specific information, please see the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (7th Ed.) .
Author's last name, Author's first name. "Title of the Work." Title of Overall Website. Publisher of the website or N.p. if
no publisher is indicated, date of publication or n.d. if no date is indicated. Medium of publication. Day Month
Year page was accessed.
Valdes, Robert. "How Autopsies Work." How Stuff Works . Discovery Communications, n.d. Web. 18 June 2009.
"Africa Top 10 Internet Countries." Table. Internet World Stats. Miniwatts Marketing Group, March 2009. Web. 18 June 2009.
Bell, Alexander Graham. The Multiple Telegraph, Invented by A. Graham Bell. Boston: Rand, 1876. Google Book
Search. Web. 18 June 2009.
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MLA7 Citation Generator
Keep all of your citations in one safe place
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Check your paper before your teacher does!
Avoid plagiarism — quickly check for missing citations and check for writing mistakes., is this source credible consider the criteria below..
Is the purpose to entertain, sell, persuade, or inform/teach ? Journal articles are often designed to inform or teach. Books and websites could have any of these or a combination of the purposes above. So it is important to determine why the source was created and if it is appropriate for your research. For websites in particular, looking at their "About Us" page or "Mission Statement" can help you evaluate purpose.
Accuracy is the reliability and truthfulness of the source. Here are a few indicators of an accurate source:
- Citations or a works cited list. For websites, this can be links to other credible sites.
- Evidence that backs up claims made by the author(s).
- Text that is free of spelling and grammatical errors.
- Information that matches that in other, credible sources.
- Language that is unbiased and free of emotion.
Based on the above the source could be accurate, inaccurate, a mixture of accurate and inaccurate, or hard to tell.
Authority: Author
The author is the individual or organization who wrote the information in the book, in the journal article, or on the website. If no author is listed, there may be another contributor instead. For example, an editor or a translator. A credible author has:
- Written several articles or books on the topic.
- Provided contact information. For example, an email address, mailing address, social media account, etc.
- The experience or qualifications to be an expert on the topic.
Authority: Publisher
The credibility of the publisher can contribute to the authority of a source. The publisher can be a person, company or organization. Authoritative publishers:
- Accept responsibility for content.
- Are often well-known.
- Often publish multiple works on the same or related topics.
Relevance describes how related or important a source is to your topic. While a source may be credible, it does not necessarily mean it is relevant to your assignment. To determine relevance, you should:
- Determine the website's intended audience. Look at the level of the information and the tone of the writing. For example, is it meant for academics or the general public?
- Make sure that the information is related to your research topic.
- Make sure that the information helps you answer your research question.
A publication date is an important part of evaluating the credibility of a source and its appropriateness for your topic. It is generally best to use content that was recently published or updated, but depending on your assignment, it may be appropriate to use older information. For example, a journal entry from Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War is too outdated to use in a discussion about modern politics and war, but would be appropriate for a paper about the Civil War. Consider the following when evaluating currency:
- Was it published or updated recently? If a website, is there even a publication date listed?
- Is the date of the source appropriate or inappropriate for my assignment?
After analyzing your source, do you believe it is credible, not credible, partially credible, or are you unsure? If you are still unsure, it may help to ask your instructor a librarian for assistance.
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Citation Guide: Home
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Is it Plagiarism?
- Is it Plagiarism, yet?
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Why Cite Sources?
Giving credit to the original author of thoughts, words, and ideas is an important ethical concept.
- To avoid PLAGIARISM: While a bibliography does not prevent plagiarism, it is an important tool in avoiding plagiarism.
- BUILDING on research: Pertinent information is gleaned from the ideas of those who came before, and a researcher then produces new knowledge by integrating the ideas of others with her own conclusions. This is the scholarly research process.
- TRACING research: According to Joseph Gibaldi, the author of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers , “in presenting their work, researchers generously acknowledge their debts to predecessors by carefully documenting each source so that earlier contributions receive appropriate credit” (104). This is the basis for all scholarship. It is important that researchers give credit so readers can trace the ideas presented back to the sources.
- CONTRIBUTING ideas: Your contribution, as a student, to disciplinary knowledge is the unique ways you interpret and synthesize the words, thoughts, and ideas of authorities. In fact, giving credit to experts and authoritative sources gives your conclusions validity that cannot be achieved by simply stating one's own opinions.
- LOCATING additional research: And that is another reason for citations: it allows readers to access the cited materials if they are performing research on that topic.
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If you're trying to determine what source to choose or what you should cite, read on for FAQs and helpful answers.
I'm citing a book, article, video, photo, etc., that I found online. Does that mean it's a "website"?
If you can classify your source as something other than a website/web page, choose that as your source. Be as specific as possible. Most times, the source citation form will give you the option to cite the source as something found online (see tabs at the top of the citation form).
- E-book -- choose "Book"
- Online newspaper article -- choose "Newspaper"
- Digital photo -- choose "Photo"
What's the difference between an "Online database" and a "Journal"?
In research, a journal is a scholarly or academic periodical featuring articles written by experts. These articles are reviewed by fellow experts (peer-reviewed) before being published.
An online database is an electronic collection of information. They are searchable and most databases found at your library provide credible, published content. Depending on the database, it might also let you access information in various formats (e.g., journals, videos, books, newspapers, etc.).
This means an online database could have several journals.
- Journals -- Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), PLOS One, New Scientist, Ecology Letters
- Online databases --- Academic One File, Britannica Academic, EBSCOHost, Facts on File
I'm still not sure what source I have. What should I do?
Scroll through our long list of source options and make your best educated guess. If you're still unsure, choose "Miscellaneous."
If there is no author, can I still cite a source?
Yes! It's always better to cite a source, even if you're unsure of all the source details. Also, not everything has an indicated author so it's ok to leave an author out in those cases. When this happens, most citation styles will list the source by its title instead of the author's last name.
I only need to cite one source, right?
A well-balanced paper usually cites several sources; often in different formats (e.g., books, journals, interviews, etc.). There isn't an exact number of sources that is ideal, but try to have more than a couple sources listed.
Also, you should cite everything you've consulted or mentioned in your paper. It's the ethical thing to do.
If I have a full citation at the end of my paper, do I really need to make in-text citations (e.g., parenthetical citations, footnotes, etc.)?
Yes, absolutely! Showing where you got certain ideas or points in your paper will help support any arguments you make. Including in-text citations is also ethical — give credit where it is due.
I heard that "common knowledge" does NOT need to be cited. What is it?
Common knowledge is general information that you can assume a normal individual would know without needing to consult a source. Yes, you do not necessarily need to cite common knowledge. However, if you are unsure if you should cite a fact or source, err on the side of caution and cite it.
- London is the capital of England
- A penguin is a bird
- The moon orbits the Earth
- Water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius
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MLA Style, 7th Edition
- About MLA 7th Edition
- Citing a Book
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- In-Text Citation
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MLA Style Guide, 7th Edition
Welcome to the mla style guide, 7th edition.
Always refer to the MLA Handbook for authorized examples to your questions.
Always ask your instructor for specific directions pertaining to your assignment.
MLA Style Handbook, 7th Edition
What is MLA Style?
The MLA Handbook, 7th edition, is being superseded by the 8th edition, which was published in April 2016. During this transition it is very important that you know which edition of the MLA Handbook your instructor is using for your class assignments. If your instructor is NOT using the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook , go to the subject guide for the 8th edition . For more information visit MLA Style Center .
Some of the citation examples in this guide are from the manual and others are examples from the Fitchburg State Librarians.
MLA is the standard citation style guide for the humanities, especially languages and literature, is the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers , 7th edition, 2009. The American Modern Language Association (MLA) publishes the manual. It is commonly referred to it as the "MLA Manual".
MLA is most often used in the Humanities disciplines including, but not limited to:
- English Language & Literature
- Comparative Literature
- Cultural Studies
- Foreign Languages
- Other areas in the humanities
What does MLA Style include?
- the format & page layout of your paper
- stylistic technicalities (e.g. abbreviations, footnotes, quotations)
- how you cite other authors within the body of your paper
- how you compile a references page at the end of your paper
- Titles of books and journals are italicized instead of underlined.
- If a date is not available for an electronic format, write n.d. for no date; if a publisher is not named on a Web site, write n.p. for no publisher; if a page number is not given for online journal or database articles, write n.pag. for no pagination.
- Each citation must declare the format, such as Print, Web, DVD, Videocassette, Television, etc.
- URLs are not required. However, you are welcome to provide the URL if the citation information may not help the reader easily find the source on their own. Your instructor may also require you to provide URLs.
- MLA Citations: An Overview Why we cite, what we cite, how we use citations as a researcher & sample citations.
MLA Resources
Bookmark these sites!
Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL): MLA Style
Purdue University's OWL gives clear brief examples for almost every MLA style question. This site has moved to the 8th edition style, however, this link reviews the differences between the 7th and 8th editions.
Frequently Asked Questions about MLA Style
A good place to find quick answers to questions such as: How do I format an entry for a book review in my Works Cited Page? How do I cite a webpage that has no author?
EasyBib MLA Format Guide, 7th Edition
The MLA Style Center
When you can't find the answer any place else, check the The MLA Style Center. This blog is written by a group of experts, and they publish weekly posts on writing and publishing using MLA style. You can search the site, explore posts by category, and view the most recent posts and comments.
Citation Generators
Many different tools exist to assist you in the process of creating a citation entry. There are advantages and challenges to working with these tools.
Common mistakes include:
- Selecting the wrong type of information source
- Inputting information incorrectly or leaving information out
- Misplaced or incorrect punctuation
- Improper capitalization
The biggest mistake is in completely trusting a citation generator to make no errors. Make sure you closely review all citations created in this way. You'll also still want to refer to your citation style guide to learn how to format your works cited/reference page.
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- Last Updated: Jul 28, 2020 9:51 AM
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Free MLA Citation Generator
Generate accurate citations in MLA format automatically, with MyBib!
😕 What is an MLA Citation Generator?
An MLA citation generator is a software tool designed to automatically create academic citations in the Modern Language Association (MLA) citation format. The generator will take information such as document titles, author, and URLs as in input, and output fully formatted citations that can be inserted into the Works Cited page of an MLA-compliant academic paper.
The citations on a Works Cited page show the external sources that were used to write the main body of the academic paper, either directly as references and quotes, or indirectly as ideas.
👩🎓 Who uses an MLA Citation Generator?
MLA style is most often used by middle school and high school students in preparation for transition to college and further education. Ironically, MLA style is not actually used all that often beyond middle and high school, with APA (American Psychological Association) style being the favored style at colleges across the country.
It is also important at this level to learn why it's critical to cite sources, not just how to cite them.
🙌 Why should I use a Citation Generator?
Writing citations manually is time consuming and error prone. Automating this process with a citation generator is easy, straightforward, and gives accurate results. It's also easier to keep citations organized and in the correct order.
The Works Cited page contributes to the overall grade of a paper, so it is important to produce accurately formatted citations that follow the guidelines in the official MLA Handbook .
⚙️ How do I use MyBib's MLA Citation Generator?
It's super easy to create MLA style citations with our MLA Citation Generator. Scroll back up to the generator at the top of the page and select the type of source you're citing. Books, journal articles, and webpages are all examples of the types of sources our generator can cite automatically. Then either search for the source, or enter the details manually in the citation form.
The generator will produce a formatted MLA citation that can be copied and pasted directly into your document, or saved to MyBib as part of your overall Works Cited page (which can be downloaded fully later!).
Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
Creating accurate citations in MLA7 has never been easier! Automatically cite a website in MLA7 by using Citation Machine's free citation generator.
Begin with our "“"Quick Guide" on citing common source types (books, magazines, newspapers, and websites). Then, discover why we have footnotes and how they
MLA is a citation style from the Modern Language Association and is commonly used in the humanities. When using MLA, you will cite sources both within the
Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in MLA. ... *The MLA handbook recommends including URLs when citing online sources.
How to cite sources in the 7th edition of MLA. ... In Text Citations; Basic Website Citation; Article from a Website; Web Page
Authority: Author. The author is the individual or organization who wrote the information in the book, in the journal article, or on the website. If no author
Web. 26 July 2011. Citation for web documents should include the following elements, in this order, if they can be found on the website (5.6.
Now supports 7th edition of MLA. ... MLA Citation Generator ... If you can classify your source as something other than a website/web page, choose that as
If you're citing an article or a publication that was originally issued in print form but that you retrieved from an online database
An MLA citation generator is a software tool designed to automatically create academic citations in the Modern Language Association (MLA) citation format.