Recommended MLA Style Guides

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In-text Citations

For more guidelines and examples, check out the MLA Style Center In-Text Citations Overview.

Basic Format:

(Last Name Page #)

Or, introduce direct quotes with the author and title within the sentence or paragraph, then include the page number(s) at the end of the quote in parentheses.

I'm citing...

You only need the author's last name and the page number.
(Burke 3)
Connect both authors' last names with and, and include the page number.
(Best and Marcus 9)
Use the first author's last name and et al., and include the page number.
(Franck et al. 327)
Use a shortened title of the work.
("Impact of Global Warming")

Works Cited

Basic Format:
Author Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. Title of Longer Work or "Title of Shorter Work." Publisher, Year. URL or DOI.

I'm citing a...

  1. Author(s). Note: Use the format Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. If there are multiple authors, use and before the last author's name.
  2. "Title of the Article." Note: Include the title of a shorter work like an article in a journal in quotation marks and use headline-style capitalization.
  3. Title of the Journal, Note: Use italics for the title of a longer work like a journal and use headline-style capitalization.
  4. vol. #,
  5. no. #, Note: If there is no additional number after the volume, only include the volume number.
  6. Publication date,
  7. pp. xxx-xxx.
If accessed online or in a library database...
  • Database, Note: Use italics for names of databases.
  • URL or permalink.
Gosine, Kevin, and Emmanuel Tabi. "Disrupting Neoliberalism and Bridging the Multiple Worlds of Marginalized Youth via Hip-Hop Pedagogy: Contemplating Possibilities." Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, vol. 38, no. 5, 2016, pp. 445-467. Research Gate, doi: 10.1080/10714413.2016.1221712.
  1. Author(s). Note: Use the format Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. If there are multiple authors, use and before the last author's name.
  2. "Title of the Article." Note: Include the title of a shorter work in quotation marks and use headline-style capitalization.
  3. Title of the Newspaper or Publisher, Note: Use italics for the title of a longer work like a newspaper or online publication and use headline-style capitalization.
  4. Publication date, Note: Use the formate Date Abbreviated Month Year.
  5. URL.
Robinson, Angela. "History Shows Why It's Time for a Black Woman to Sit on the Supreme Court ." The Washington Post, 1 Feb. 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/02/01/history-shows-why-its-time-black-woman-sit-supreme-court/.
Print Book
  1. Author(s). Note: Use the format Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. If there are multiple authors, use and before the last author's name.
  2. Title of the Book. Note: Use italics for the title of a longer work like a book and use headline-style capitalization.
  3. Edition Note: If there are multiple editions, use the format 1st/2nd/3rd ed.,
  4. Publisher,
  5. Publication date.
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. 1st ed., J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1960.
eBook
  1. Author(s). Note: Use the format Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. If there are multiple authors, use and before the last author's name.
  2. Title of the Book, Note: Use italics for the title of a longer work like a book and use headline-style capitalization.
  3. Editors Note: If there is one editor, use the format edited by Last Name, First Name. If there are multiple editors, use and before the last author's name.
  4. Publisher,
  5. Publication date.
  6. Database, Note: Use italics for names of databases.
  7. URL or permalink.
Hughes, Langston. Letters from Langston: From the Harlem Renaissance to the Red Scare and Beyond, edited by Evelyn Louise Crawford and Mary Louise Patterson. University of California Press, 2016. EBSCOhost Academic eBook Collection, http://libproxy.csudh.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e000xna&AN=1105577&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&.
  1. Author(s) of the Chapter. Note: Use the format Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial (if any). If there are multiple authors, use and before the last author's name.
  2. "Title of the Chapter." Note: Include the title of a shorter work like a chapter in quotation marks and use headline-style capitalization.
  3. Title of the Book, Note: Use italics for the title of a longer work like a book and use headline-style capitalization.
  4. Editors Note: If there is one editor, use the format edited by First Name Middle Name or Initial (if any) Last Name. If there are multiple editors, use and before the last author's name.
  5. Publisher,
  6. Publication date,
  7. pp. xxx-xxx.
  8. Database, Note: Use italics for names of databases.
  9. URL or permalink.
Green, David. "Supporting the Academic Success of Hispanic Students." College Libraries and Student Culture: What We Now Know, edited by Andrew D. Asher and Lynda M. Duke, ALA Editions, 2011. EBSCOhost Academic eBook Collection, http://libproxy.csudh.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=390319.
  1. Author. Note: If there is no individual author, begin the citation with "Title of the Page."
  2. "Title of Page, Section, or Document."
  3. Publisher,
  4. URL.
"Citation Guide." CSUDH University Library, https://www.libguides.csudh.edu/citation.

Check out more  examples of citing online sources from the MLA Style Cetner. 

Citing a letter, photograph, text document, graphic material, or ephemera? Consult the  Gerth Archives MLA Citation Guide for Archival Materials.

How do I make a hanging indent in Word?

1. Highlight the citaiton with your cursor. 

2. Right click. 

3. Select Paragraph.

4. Under Indentation, select Special and Hanging.

How can I save time formatting my paper?

Microsoft Word and Google Docs have a Format Painter tool that will copy and apply basic formatting to any text! 

1. Highlight the formatting you want to apply. 

2. Select Format Painter. 

3. Highlight the text you want to change. 

Note: If using the Format Painter on the Reference List, you'll need to go back and add italics.

MLA Style 9th ed. Videos

Scribbr. “MLA Style Citations and Formatting.” YouTube, YouTube, 24 June 2021,

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjBMY3HggCpDtWzAv7NLXUi_X8Y6DFQAe.

Bristol Library Learning Commons. “Citation Help - MLA 9th Edition.” YouTube, YouTube, 19 Apr. 2022,

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLm45MUSBPRMp5pMyjkniTncMN3kVW_ax2.

Retrieving a MLA Style citation from results in the Page 1+ Library Search

When viewing a detailed item record in the Page 1+ search platform, a computer-generated citation is available to copy and paste. Look for the quotation marks symbol to identify the citation tool. Select "MLA (9th edition)" and copy and paste the text. Always follow instructor guidelines and proofread the text to ensure accuracy.

screenshot of mla citation in library catalogue

Creative Commons License CC by NC 4.0 This guide was adapted from Tessa Withorn at  CSUDH Library and licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

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