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MLA Citation Basics
MLA Citation Basics
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MLA citation is a standard way to show where information, ideas, and quotations come from in English and humanities writing. It matters because it gives credit to original authors and helps readers find the sources you used. Strong citation habits also protect students from plagiarism and make research papers look organized and trustworthy.
MLA uses two connected parts: short in-text citations inside the paper and full source entries on a Works Cited page. The in-text citation points the reader to the matching Works Cited entry, usually by author last name and page number. MLA entries follow a flexible pattern based on core elements such as author, title, container, publisher, date, and location.
Key Facts
- Basic in-text citation format: (Author page), such as (Garcia 42).
- If the author's name is in the sentence, cite only the page number: Garcia argues that reading builds empathy (42).
- A Works Cited page lists only the sources actually used and cited in the paper.
- Basic book format: Author Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Year.
- Basic website format: Author Last Name, First Name. 'Title of Page.' Title of Website, Publisher, Date, URL.
- MLA Works Cited entries are alphabetized by the first word of the entry, usually the author's last name.
Vocabulary
- Citation
- A citation is a note that gives credit to a source and helps readers locate it.
- In-text citation
- An in-text citation is a brief source reference placed in the body of a paper near borrowed information.
- Works Cited
- A Works Cited page is the final page of an MLA paper that lists full details for every cited source.
- Container
- A container is the larger work that holds a source, such as a website, journal, database, or book collection.
- Plagiarism
- Plagiarism is using someone else's words, ideas, or work without proper credit.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Leaving out in-text citations after paraphrases is wrong because borrowed ideas need credit even when the wording is your own.
- Putting sources on the Works Cited page that were not used in the paper is wrong because MLA lists only sources actually cited.
- Alphabetizing by first name is wrong because MLA usually alphabetizes by the author's last name or by the first main word of the entry.
- Copying a URL alone as a citation is wrong because MLA requires source details such as author, title, website or container, date, and location when available.
Practice Questions
- 1 Write the correct MLA in-text citation for a quotation from page 27 of a book by Maya Johnson.
- 2 Create a Works Cited entry for this book: author Luis Rivera, title The History of Storytelling, publisher North Star Press, year 2021.
- 3 A student paraphrases three sentences from an article but does not include an in-text citation because no exact words were copied. Explain why this is still a citation problem.