Need to book an appointment with a librarian? Click here!
Write an entry for your references page.
View examples of MLA citations.
Learn how to format an in-text citation.
Set up your paper according to MLA guidelines.
Get more help from the NWACC Library and beyond!
A citation style is a uniform and reliable method of guiding readers to the sources of information referenced in a piece of writing. You need to cite your sources whenever you borrow phrases, ideas, arguments, images, etc. from someone. When we use citation, we give credit to the original ideas that influenced, inspired, or guided our own original work.
Citations help your reader. Within the body of your paper, you will use in-text citations to reference the original source. This basically plants a flag your reader can follow to find the full information about your source. The reader finds this information at the end of your paper in a list of reference. In MLA Style, this list is called the works cited. The works cited list goes on a separate page at the end of the paper.
MLA Handbook by
Relied on by generations of writers, the MLA Handbook is published by the Modern Language Association and is the only official, authorized book on MLA style. The new, ninth edition builds on the MLA's unique approach to documenting sources using a template of core elements--facts, common to most sources, like author, title, and publication date--that allows writers to cite any type of work, from books, e-books, and journal articles in databases to song lyrics, online images, social media posts, dissertations, and more. With this focus on source evaluation as the cornerstone of citation, MLA style promotes the skills of information and digital literacy so crucial today. The many new and updated chapters make this edition the comprehensive, go-to resource for writers of research papers, and anyone citing sources, from business writers, technical writers, and freelance writers and editors to student writers and the teachers and librarians working with them. Intended for a variety of classroom contexts--middle school, high school, and college courses in composition, communication, literature, language arts, film, media studies, digital humanities, and related fields--the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook offers *New chapters on grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, numbers, italics, abbreviations, and principles of inclusive language *Guidelines on setting up research papers in MLA format with updated advice on headings, lists, and title pages for group project *Revised, comprehensive, step-by-step instructions for creating a list of works cited in MLA format that are easier to learn and use than ever before *A new appendix with hundreds of example works-cited-list entries by publication format, including websites, YouTube videos, interviews, and more *Detailed examples of how to find publication information for a variety of sources *Newly revised explanations of in-text citations, including comprehensive advice on how to cite multiple authors of a single work *Detailed guidance on footnotes and endnotes *Instructions on quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, and avoiding plagiarism *A sample essay in MLA format *Annotated bibliography examples *Numbered sections throughout for quick navigation *Advanced tips for professional writers and scholars