LibGuides: Citations: MLA

Additional Resources

Online guides are helpful, but always follow your instructor's specific directions when formatting your paper or creating citations.

Try the MLA Interactive Practice Template Visit the Purdue OWL MLA Style Guide View MLA Formatting Papers Guide Sample MLA Paper with Works Cited List

MLA In-Text Citations

Click any heading below to expand and see examples of how to format MLA in-text citations.

Basic Format

Author Mentioned in Sentence

No Author

Different Pages from the Same Source

Same Author, Different Sources

Multiple Unsigned Articles (Same Title)

Multiple Sources in One Citation

Web Sources (No Page #)

Indirect Sources

Hanging Indent in Google Docs

Prefer YouTube’s interface or need captions? Watch it directly on YouTube .

General Formatting Rules for MLA

Works Cited

Your end-of-paper list of references should be titled Works Cited and centered on the page.

Alphabetical Order

Citations should be in alphabetical order by the author’s last name. If no author, alphabetize by the article title.

Ignore “A,” “An,” and “The.” Alphabetize by the next word.

Formatting

Your paper should be typed, double-spaced, and use 1" margins. MLA recommends a 12 pt. Times New Roman font.

Titles

Italicize titles of larger works (books, websites, films). Use “quotation marks” for articles, poems, and song titles.

Page Numbers

In the Works Cited list, use p. or pp. before page numbers. Do not include these labels inside in-text citations.

Month Abbreviations

Abbreviate: Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec. Do not abbreviate: May, June, July.

Missing Information

MLA no longer uses placeholders like n.d.. If information is missing, omit it.

Need Help?

▶️ Watch this MLA formatting video

📄 View a sample MLA paper on Purdue OWL

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MLA Core Elements Overview

MLA uses Core Elements to cite all types of sources.

Use the punctuation shown after each element unless it is the final element, which should always end with a period.
If an element does not apply to your source, leave it out.

Authors/Contributors

If there are more than two authors, list the first author, followed by a comma and et al.
Additional roles like editor or translator are no longer abbreviated.

Date of Access

Including the date you accessed the resource is not required.
MLA recommends adding the date of access if the source lacks a publication date (see page 53 of the MLA handbook).

Location

This refers to a locator within a container, not a city or geographic place.
Use p. or pp. for page numbers in the Works Cited list only.
Use DOIs when available.
Add URLs (without http:// or https://). For database sources, you may use the database name instead (e.g., Academic Search Premier).

Publishers/Sponsors

If the organization is both author and publisher, list it once—as the publisher.
For websites, omit the publisher if it is the same as the site name (see MLA handbook p. 42).

Recordings

Use time markers (e.g., 01:23–02:30) as you would use page numbers for print sources.

❓ When in doubt: Check with your instructor if you have specific questions about formatting your paper or creating citations.

Watch: MLA Citation Basics

MLA Citation Examples by Material Type

MLA in-text citation and Works Cited examples organized by material type
Material Type	In-Text Citation	Works Cited
Book	(Lewis and Hill 23–24) (Tallett and Trim 112)	Lewis, Jon, and Joe Hill. American Film: A History. W.W. Norton, 2008. Book with no author, only editors Tallett, Frank, and David Trim, editors. European Warfare, 1350–1750. Cambridge UP, 2010.
eBook	(Nathanson) Do not use page numbers for web sources.	Nathanson, Mitchell. A People’s History of Baseball. 7th ed., University of Illinois Press, 2012. eBook Academic Collection, ebscohost.net. [eBook Academic Collection (EBSCOhost)* is a second container and italicized.]
Chapter/Essay from a Book or eBook	(Judd 56) (Williams 28) (McElroy)	Judd, Sandra. “Heart Attack.” Cardiovascular Disorders Sourcebook, Omnigraphics, 2016, pp. 56–59. Williams, Bill. “History of Tamales.” Encyclopedia of Food, edited by Sherry Miller, Random House Press, 2014, pp. 24–38. McElroy, Mary. “Health Care Systems in the United States.” The 1950s in America, edited by John C. Super, Salem, 2005. Salem Online, online.salempress.com.
Webpage	("Aplastic Anemia") (Brooks)	“Aplastic Anemia.” MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine, 2016, medlineplus.gov/aplasticanemia.html#cat95. Brooks, Bucky. “Super Bowl LI: Five-Part Plan for Atlanta Falcons to Win It All.” NFL, 24 Jan. 2017, www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000778578. [Omit http:// or https:// from URLs. Omit publisher if same as site title.]
Periodicals (magazines, newspapers, journals)	(Kane et al.) (Breznican 21–22)	Kane, Kevin, et al. “Beyond Fragmentation at the Fringe: An Analysis of Urban Land Cover in Phoenix.” Applied Geography, vol. 52, no. 2, 2014, pp. 123–134. ScienceDirect, sciencedirect.com. Breznican, Anthony. “Hidden Secrets of Star Wars.” Entertainment Weekly, 12 Dec. 2015, pp. 20–23.
Motion Picture	(Captain America: Civil War)	Captain America: Civil War. Directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, performances by Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr., Marvel Studios, 2016.
TV Show Episode	("Winds of Winter")	“Winds of Winter.” Game of Thrones, season 6, episode 10, HBO Productions, 2014.
YouTube Video	("Real History")	“Real History Behind Game of Thrones.” YouTube, uploaded by Alp, 14 July 2016, youtu.be/Odw3Nxdqq4o.
Video Game	(Sekiro: Shadows)	Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. PlayStation 4, FromSoftware, 2019.
Image, Online	(Souza)	Souza, Pete. President Barack Obama Views the Hoover Dam. 2 Oct. 2012, photograph. Obama White House Archives, 7 July 2015.
Generative AI Consult your instructor before using. Detailed MLA Instructions	("Describe the Benefits")	“Describe the benefits of solar energy” prompt. ChatGPT, 14 Mar. version, OpenAI, 23 Mar. 2023.