What is MLA Format?

MLA stands for the Modern Language Association, which is an organization

that focuses on language and literature. MLA is often used for language and
literature studies. APA stands for the American Psychological Association,
which is an organization that focuses on psychology.  APA format is widely
used by science writers, on the other hand, Chicago citation style is often the
preferred choice for those working in history and other social sciences. Many
other disciplines use Chicago as well.
When you're borrowing information from a source and placing it in your
research or assignment, it is important to give credit to the original author. This
is done by creating an MLA citation. Depending on the type of information
you're including in your work, citations are placed in the body of your project
and all are included in a "Works Cited" list, at the end of your project.
The 8th edition is the most recent and updated version of MLA citations.
Released in April of 2016, this citation format is much different than previous
versions.
The biggest difference and most exciting update is the use of one standard
format for all source types. In previous versions, scholars were required to
locate the citation format for the specific source that they used. There were
different formats for books, websites, periodicals, and so on. Now, using one
universal MLA citation format allows scholars to spend less time trying to
locate the proper format to document their sources and focus more on
their research.
Other updates include the addition of "containers." A container is essentially
what a source sits in. Chapters are found in a book, songs are found in an
album, and journal articles are found in journals. What the source is found in is
its container.

Text Formatting
 Always choose an easily readable typeface (Times New Roman is just one
example)
 Set it to a standard size, such as 12 points
 Do not justify the lines of text at the right margin
 Double-space the entire research paper, including quotations, notes, and the list
of works cited.
 Indent the first line of a paragraph half an inch from the left margin.
 Indent set-off quotations half an inch as well.
 Leave one space after a period or other concluding punctuation mark.
 Begin one inch from the top of the first page and flush with the left margin,
 Type your name, your instructor’s name (or instructors’ names, if there is more
than one instructor), the course number, and the date on separate lines, double-
spacing the lines. Months may be spelled out or abbreviated.
 On a new, double-spaced line, center the title (fig. 1). Do not italicize or
underline your title, put it in quotation marks or boldface, or type it in all capital
letters.
 Do not use a period after your title or after any heading in the paper
(e.g., Works Cited). Begin your text on a new, double-spaced line after the title,
indenting the first line of the paragraph half an inch from the left margin.

Fig. 1. The top of the first page of a research paper.

Number all pages consecutively throughout the research paper in the upper
right-hand corner, half an inch from the top and flush with the right margin.
Type your last name, followed by a space, before the page number (fig. 2)

Fig.
2. The running head of a research paper.

Did you use any quotes or place any paraphrases in your writing?
Create in-text citations and place them in the body of your work. Then,
create a list of full citations and place them at the end of the project.
Label the page as "Works Cited."

Works Cited
The list of works cited appears at the end of the paper on a new page and
continues the page numbering of the text.
• Center the title, Works Cited, an inch from the top of the page.
• Double-space between the title and the first entry.
• Begin each entry flush with the left margin; if an entry runs more than one
line, indent the subsequent line or lines one-half inch from the left margin
• Double space the entire list, both between and within entries.

Bibliography vs. Works Cited - What's the Difference?

You may have heard the two terms, "Bibliography" and "Works Cited" thrown
around interchangeably. The truth is that they are two different words with two
completely different meanings.
A bibliography is a list of sources that the writer recommends for further
reading. A works cited list is a list of sources that were included in the author's
writing.
Want to suggest some books and websites to your reader? Create a list of full
citations and label the page as "Bibliography."
The good news is that references in MLA bibliography format and regular
works cited references are structured the exact same way.

The core elements of any entry in the Works Cited list are shown in the chart
below. The core elements are in the order in which they should appear, followed
by the appropriate punctuation mark. If an element cannot be found or does not
apply to the source being cited, omit that element from the entry. End the entry
with a period.
 Citation Components
1) Authors:
The author's name is generally the first item in a citation (unless the source does
not have an author). The author's name is followed by a period.
Last name, First name. Title of Book. Publisher, Year of Publication.
1. If the source has one author, place the last name first, add a comma, and then
the first name.
One author: 
Brinkley, Alan. The Unfinished Nation: A Concise History of the American
People. 7th ed, McGraw Hill, 2014, p. 525.
2. If your source has two authors, place them in the same order they're shown on
the source. The first author is in reverse order, add a comma and the word
"and", then place the second author in standard form. Follow their names with a
period.
Example:
Two authors: 
McKee, Timothy, and James A. McKee. Business Ethics: The Political Basis of
Commerce. Oxford UP, 2009.
3. For three or more authors, only include the first listed author's name. Place
the first author's name in reverse order (Last name, First name) place a comma
afterwards, and then add the Latin phrase "et al."
Example:
 Three or more authors: 
Tucker, Virginia M., et al. “Learning Portals: Analyzing Threshold Concept
Theory for LIS Education.” Journal of Education for Library and Information
Science, vol. 55, no. 2, Apr. 2014, pp. 150-65. Academic
OneFile, db12.linccweb.org/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
id=GALE
%7CA369065399&v=2.1&u=lincclin_ircc&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=4816
41178d785366b35d618e23308ebf.

4. For an editor, begin the citation with the name(s) of the editor(s).
One editor: 
DiYanni, Robert, editor. Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 6th
ed., McGraw Hill, 2007.
Two editors: 
Zeigler-Hill, Virgil, and David K. Marcus, editors. The Dark Side of
Personality: Science and Practice in Social, Personality, and Clinical
Psychology. American Psychological Association, 2016.
Three or more editors: 
Damrosch, David, et al., editors. The Longman Anthology of World
Literature, 2nd ed., vol. A, Pearson Education, 2009

2) Title of the Source:

In general, the title of a work is taken from the title page of the publication.
 List the full title as it is written on the source. 
o Capitalize all principal words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.). Do not capitalize
articles, prepositions, or conjunctions when they fall in the middle of a title.
o Separate a subtitle with a colon and a space.
 Italicize titles if the source is self-contained and independent. Titles of books,
plays, films, periodicals, databases, and websites are italicized.
 Place titles in quotation marks if the source is part of a larger work. Articles,
essays, chapters, poems, webpages, songs, and speeches are placed in quotation
marks.
Books:
Danticat, Edwidge. Brother, I'm Dying. Knopf, 2007.  
Chapter title in a book or anthology: 
 Howard, Rebecca Moore. “Avoiding Sentence Fragments.” Writing Matters: A
Handbook for Writing and Research, 2nd ed., McGraw Hill, 2014, pp. 600-10.
Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers:
Houtman, Eveline. “Mind-Blowing: Fostering Self-Regulated Learning in
Information Literacy Instruction.” Communications in Information
Literacy, vol. 9, no. 1, 2015, pp. 6-18. www.comminfolit.org/index.php?
journal=cil&page=article&op=view&path%5B%5D=v9i1p6&path%5B
%5D=203.
Web page:
Meade, Rita. "It's Not Too Late to Advocate." Screwy Decimal, 1 June 2016,
www.screwydecimal.com/2016/06/its-not-too-late-to-advocate.html.

Entire Website:
Meade, Rita. Screwy Decimal. 2010-16, www.screwydecimal.com/.

3) Title of Container:
Containers are either
1) complete works which contain smaller works, like a book containing
essays, a book containing short stories, or an academic journal containing
articles, or
2) larger containers holding smaller containers, like a website containing
webpages.
The title of the container is italicized and followed by a comma.
 Collection of essays, stories, poems, etc.: 
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Black Cat". Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and
Drama, edited by Robert DiYanni, 6th ed., McGraw Hill, 2007, pp. 137-43.
 Print journal, magazine, or newspaper article: 
Dukes, Charlene. "Recognizing our Camelot Moment." Community College
Journal, vol. 86, no. 5, Apr./May 2016, p. 1. 
 Journal, magazine, or newspaper article from an online database:
Tucker, Virginia M., et al. “Learning Portals: Analyzing Threshold Concept
Theory for LIS Education.” Journal of Education for Library and Information
Science, vol. 55, no. 2, Apr. 2014, pp. 150-
 65. AcademicOneFile, db12.linccweb.org/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/
ps/i.do?id=GALE
%7CA369065399&v=2.1&u=lincclin_ircc&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=4816
41178d785366b35d618e23308ebf

4) Other Contributors
 If someone other than the primary author (or editor) contributed to the source
in a way that is relevant to your paper, you can identify that person by including
this element.
 This element begins with a description of the other contributor. Some common
descriptors include: 
adapted by edited by
introduction by narrated by
performance by translated by
Personal author(s) with editor(s):
Tynan, Kenneth. "The Kansas Farm Murders." The Critical Response to
Truman Capote, edited by Joseph J. Waldmeir and John C.
Waldmeir, Greenwood Press, 1999, pp. 129-34.
Personal author(s) with translator(s):
Kafka, Franz. The Metamorphosis. Translated by Stanley Corngold, 2013 ed.,
Modern Library, 1915.

5) Version
It is not always needed. If different versions of the source exist, use this element
to state which version is being cited.
Edition:
Howard, Rebecca Moore. "Avoiding Sentence Fragments." Writing Matters: A
Handbook for Writing and Research, 2nd ed., McGraw Hill, 2014, pp. 600-10. 

6) Number
This element may not be necessary for every Works Cited entry. Number is
used to document multiple volume works which are numbered. For example,
journals are typically numbered by volume and issue.
 Abbreviate the word volume as "vol." and the word number as "no.". Separate
the two parts with a comma and a space in this format: vol. 10, no. 2, This
element ends with a comma.
Book in multiple volumes:
Damrosch, David, et al, editors. The Longman Anthology of World
Literature. 2nd ed., vol. A, Pearson Education, 2009.
Journal article:
Houtman, Eveline. "Mind-Blowing: Fostering Self-Regulated Learning in
Information Literacy Instruction." Communications in Information
Literacy, vol.9, no. 1, 2015, pp. 6-
18. www.comminfolit.org/index.phpjournal=cil&page=article&op=view&path
%5B%5D=v9i1p6&path%5B%5D=203.

7) Publisher
The company or organization primarily responsible for producing the source or
making it available is the publisher. For books, the publisher is listed on the title
page.
 This element begins with a capital letter because it will almost always be a
proper noun.
 Use shortened forms of publisher names. For example, "University Press" is
shortened to "UP". Omit all business words like "Company", "Corporation",
"Incorporated", and "Limited".
 Some sources will not have a publisher. Common examples include articles
from periodicals (journals, magazines, and newspapers), self-published works,
Web sites with no publisher listed, and Web sites functioning as a container
instead of a publisher like YouTube, WordPress.com, JSTOR, etc.
 This element ends with a comma.
Book:
Brinkley, Alan, The Unfinished Nation: A Concise History of the American
People. 7th ed, McGraw Hill, 2014, p. 525.
Website:
Couceiro, Sofia and Jason Hanna. "Kate's Sister, Pippa Middleton, Announces
Engagement." CNN, 19 July 2016, www.cnn.com/2016/07/19/europe/uk-pippa-
middleton-engagement/index.html.
Blog network:
 DiFrancesco, Tim. "The 4-Week Fitness Plan to Increase Strength: Day
9." Hello Healthy, My Fitness Pal, 2 June 2016, blog.myfitnesspal.com/4-week-
fitness-plan-increase-strength-day-9/.

8) Publication date 
Whether the year, month and year, or complete date is cited depends on the
information available, the type of source, and the use of the source.
 This element begins with a number (year or date) or a capital letter for the name
of the month.
 Full dates are given in this format: 28 Jan. 2016 
 Use abbreviations for months with names longer than four letters: 
Jan – Feb – Mar- Apr – Aug – Sept – Oct – Nov - Dec.

 If a season is given instead of a month, include the season: Spring 2015

 For online content, give the date the material was posted online,
 This element ends with a comma, unless it is the final element in an entry.
Book:
DiYanni, Robert, editor. Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 6th
ed., McGraw Hill, 2007.
Journal, magazine, or newspaper article:
Dickman, Kylie. "Apocalypse in the Garden State." Rolling Stone, no. 1260, 5
May 2016, pp. 36-9.

9) Location
This element describes where the source was accessed/can be found. Locations
can be cities, page numbers, URLs, etc.
 The location used depends on the medium of the source.
 For print sources, the location is the page number or range of page numbers.
o The format is "p. 166" for one page and "pp. 123-166" for a range of pages.
 For online sources, the location is the URL or DOI (if available).
 This element ends with a period.
Book:
Brinkley, Alan. The Unfinished Nation: A Concise History of the American
People. 7th ed. McGraw Hill. 2014, p. 525.
Print journal, magazine, or newspaper article:
 Dickman, Kylie. "Apocalypse in the Garden State." Rolling Stone, no. 1260, 5 May
2016, pp. 36-39.
Journal, magazine, or newspaper article from an online database:
Tucker, Virginia M., et al. “Learning Portals: Analyzing Threshold Concept Theory
for LIS Education.” Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, vol.
55, no. 2, Apr. 2014, pp. 150-165. Academic OneFile, db12.linccweb.org/login?
url=http://go.galegroup.com.db12.linccweb.org/ps/i.do?id=GALE
%7CA369065399&v=2.1&u=lincclin_ircc&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=481641178
d785366b35d618e23308ebf.

E-Citation

Websites:
The most basic entry for an MLA website citation consists of the author name(s), page
title, website title, sponsoring institution/publisher, date published, and the URL.
Format:
Author's Last name, First name. "Title of Individual Web Page." Title of Website,
Publisher, Date, URL.
Example:
Fosslien, Liz, and Mollie West. "3 Ways to Hack Your Environment to Help You
Create." Huffpost Preposition Endeavor, Huffington Post, Dec. 7, 2016,
www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/3-ways-to-hack-your-environment-to-help-you-
createus580f758be4b02444efa569bc.

E-Books:
Format for an e-book found on the Internet:
Author's Last name, First name. Title of E-Book. Publisher, Year published. Title of
Website, URL.
Rodgers, Tara. Pink Noises: Women on Electronic Music and Sound. Duke UP,
2010. Google Books, books.google.com/books?
id=syqTarqO5XEC&lpg=PP1&dq=electronic
%20music&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q=electronic%20music&f=false.
Citing a Tweet from Twitter:
Example:
@BibMe. "Need help with MLA essay format? Here are 6 steps to getting it
done..." Twitter, 3 Dec. 2018, twitter.com/bibme/status/1069682724716204032.
Citing a Facebook Post:
 Example:
DeGeneres, Ellen. "Holiday party goals..." Facebook, 21 Dec. 2018,
www.facebook.com/ellentv/photos/a.182755292239/10157188088077240/?
type=3&theater.
Citing an Instagram Post:
Example:
@dualipa. "A lil Hollywood glam brunch! Thank you @variety for by Breakthrough
Artist of the Year award and thank you for your continuous support...." Instagram, 2
Dec. 2018, www.instagram.com/p/Bq33SC2BAsr/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link.

In-Text & Parenthetical Citation Basics:

When using a direct quote or paraphrasing information from a source, add an
in-text or parenthetical citation into the body of your work. Direct quotes are
word-for-word quotes that are pulled from a source and added into your project.
A paraphrase is taking a section of information from a source and placing it in
your own words. Both direct quotes and paraphrases require in-text or
parenthetical citation to follow it.
Format your parenthetical or in-text citation in MLA as follows:
"Direct quote" or paraphrase (Author's last name and page number).
OR
Author's last name said that "Direct Quote" or paraphrase (page number).

Examples:
"Jim never got back with a bucket of water under an hour - and even then
somebody generally had to go after him" (Twain 8).
OR
Twain went on to say, "Jim never got back with a bucket of water under an hour
- and even then somebody generally had to go after him (8).
Work Cited
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. W. W. Norton & Company,
2007, p.8.

According to B.F. Skinner, behavior analysis is necessary for society

because "almost all major problems involve human behavior" (24).
or
Behavior analysis is necessary for society because "almost all major problems
involve human behavior" (Skinner 24).
 Work Cited
Skinner, B.F. Beyond Freedom and Dignity. Alfred A. Knopf, 1971, p. 24.

If your in-text citation comes from a website or another source that does not
have page numbers, use the following abbreviations:
 If the source has designated paragraph numbers, use par. or pars
 If the source has designated sections, use sec. or secs.
 If the source has designated chapters, use ch. or chs.

Example :
Gregor's sister is quite … we can't endure it" (Kafka, chap. III).
 If there aren't page, paragraph, section, or chapter numbers, only include the
author's name in the in-text or parenthetical citation.
Example :
The girl's affection towards Marley … to the theater (Tales of Times Ago).
Author Page Number Citation
One author 
Alexander notes that race was a critical topic in the 1968 presidential race (22-
29).
Two authors 
Give both names separated by the word and 
Wilson and Schlosser state the results...(47).
Three or more authors 
When mentioning the authors in the text, give all of the authors' names or list
the first author and write "and others".
For the parenthetical citation and Works Cited citation, give the first author's
name followed by et al. 
James and others claim that social customs prevalent in the southern United
States have...(157-65).
OR
Social customs in the southern United States have become... (James et al. 157-
165).
Multiple works by the same author
Include the author's name, then a comma, then a shortened version of the title,
followed by the page reference.
(Dickens, David Copperfield 347).
Authors with the same surname 
When authors of two separate works in your Works Cited list have the same
surname, include the first initial of the author you are referencing in the in-text
citation.
(H. Smith 34).
Organizations as authors/Corporate author
List the corporate author followed by the page reference. Abbreviate words like
Department.
(American Library Association 17).
Works with Anonymous listed as author 
Only list Anonymous as the author when Anonymous is given as the author's
name. Follow that with the page reference. When the author's name is just
unknown, skip the author element and move to the next element. Do not use the
term Anonymous for works without authors listed.
Anonymous said...(83).
(Anonymous 83). 
Works without pagination
When citing a website or webpage (without page numbers), include the author's
name only in the in-text citation.
(Horowitz).
(United States, Congress, House, Committee on the Judiciary)
Entire works
If you are referring to an entire work, you may identify the work in your text
using the author or title name from your Works Cited list rather than a
parenthetical citation.
To Kill a Mockingbird was published over fifty years ago and is still read by
many students today.
Multivolume works (one volume consulted)
If your Works Cited entry indicates only one volume of a multivolume set,
include the page reference in the parenthetical citation. The volume is already
specified in the Works Cited entry.
(Norat 27).
Norat, Gisela. "Isabel Allende: Chilean and American Novelist." Notable
Latino Writers, vol. 1, Salem Press, 2006, pp. 27-34.

Practice
T/F
You shouldn't use the authors’ last names in the citation if the authors’ names appear in the
text.
You only use “et al” when you are citing a text with more than three authors.
When you use quotations in the text, you place the citation before the last quotation mark.
You only use block quotes when quoting more than 4 lines (not sentences) of text.
Answer: True – True – False – True

Choose correct answer

On the sample Works Cited page shown below, indicate which type of source
(i.e. book, article, publication, web site, etc.) each entry represents
Works Cited
American Association for Artificial Intelligence. 17 Mar. 2001 .<http://www.aaai.org>
Bernstein, Barton J. “Atomic Diplomacy: Hiroshima and Nagasaki.” Diplomatic History 28.3
(1991): 126-29.
The Chicago Manual of Style. 15th ed. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 2003
Colbert, Stephen. Home page. 1 Nov. 2006. <http://colbertnation.com>.
Crane, Niles F. “Anarchy at Sea.” Atlantic Monthly Sept. 2003: 50-80
Creation of the Media: Political Origins of the Media. Los Angeles: Houghton-Mifflin, 1922.
Van Delay, Art. Seinfeld: The Show About Nothing. New York: Penguin Books, 1997.

---. Venetian Blinds: Contemporary Study of Compulsive Lying. New York: Pendant Publishing, 1994.