WR121 Sean Warren

Author.

Begin the entry with the author’s last name, followed by a comma and the rest of the name, as presented in the work. End this element with a period.

• One author: Lastname1, Firstname1.
• Two authors: Lastname1, Firstname1 and Firstname2 Lastname2. 
• Three or more authors: Lastname1, Firstname1, et al.

See Section 5.5 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Title of Source.

The title of the source should follow the author’s name. Depending upon the type of source, it should be listed in italics or quotation marks. End this element with a period.

• Title of Book.
• Title of Entire Website.
• "Title of Article."
• "Title of Chapter within a Book."
• "Title of Page on a Website."

See Section 5.25 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

What is the purpose of MLA?

MLA (Modern Language Association) style is used to organize papers and cite sources, primarily within the arts and humanities disciplines. These disciplines include English, literature, art history, and philosophy.

MLA style guidelines provide readability and consistency, which makes you more credible:

• as a student, by guiding you through creating citations and citing sources
• as a writer, by demonstrating your knowledge of disciplinary conventions

Title of Container,

MLA defines "Containers" as the larger wholes in which the source is located. For example, an article (source) is published in a journal (larger whole container). A webpage (source) is published on a website (larger whole container).

The title of the Container is usually italicized and followed by a comma, since the information that follows next describes the container.

• Title of Journal,
• Title of Website,
• Title of Newspaper,
• Title of Television Series,

See Section 5.37 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Contributors,

Contributors are additional people who played key roles and should be credited, such as editors, illustrators, translators, etc.  Introduce each name by describing the role the person played.

• Translated by Firstname Lastname,
• Edited by Firstname1 Lastname1 and Firstname2 Lastname2,

See Section 5.43 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Version,

If a source is listed as an edition or version of a work, include that information in your citation.

• unabridged version,
• e-book ed., 
• 7th ed.,
• young reader's ed.,
• director's cut,

See Section 5.50 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Number,

If a source is part of a numbered sequence, like a multi-volume book, a journal with volume and issue numbers, or a TV series, include those numbers in your citation.

• vol. 45, no. 8,
• season 10, episode 7,

See Section 5.53 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Publisher,

The publisher is the entity primarily responsible for producing or distributing the source to the public. If there is more than one publisher and they are all relevant to your research, list them in your citation, separated by a forward slash (/). Include any punctuation.

• Penguin Random House Audio,
• HarperCollins / University of Pennsylvania Press, 
• MIT Press,

See Section 5.59 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Publication Date,

The Publication Date tells your readers when the version of the work you are using was published. The Publication Date element can contain one or more of the following:

• a year: 2026,
• a day and month: 18 Aug,. 2005,
• a season: fall 2024, 
• a time stamp: 29 Sept. 2025, 6:00 p.m., 
• a range of dates or years: 1475-1550,

See Section 5.77 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Location - online resources

Be as specific as possible in identifying a work’s location. The location of an online work should include a DOI or a URL.

DOI stands for Digital Object Identifier, and is a long alphanumeric code unique to the document. The purpose of a DOI number is to make items more easily retrievable, and MLA prefers DOIs to URLs.

• DOIs are usually found on the first page of a document. This includes journal articles, eBooks, and even print books.
• Include the https:// or http:// preceding the DOI. If that is missing, start the entry with https://doi.org/
  • Example: https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13148

If you cannot find a DOI, include the direct URL to the item.

• For library-provided resources, use a permalink URL. Library databases provide permalink URLs that function similarly to DOIs.
• You can usually omit (erase) the https:// or http:// from the URL unless you want to hyperlink them.
• You can shorten URLs longer than three full lines.
  • Example: www.cdc.gov/long-covid/about/index.html

See Sections 5.93 and 5.95 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Location - print resources

Be as specific as possible in identifying a work’s location. An essay in a book or an article in a journal should include page numbers.

• pp. 342-49.
• p. ix.
• p. A11-A12.

See Section 5.88 of the MLA Handbook for more details.

Book or eBook (electronic book)

In-text citations

If a specific part of a work is quoted or paraphrased and the work includes a page number or other indicator of place in the work, include that in parentheses.

• Citation in prose: According to Young and Fialkov....
• Citation in prose: ...but surprisingly Lees-Jeffries asserted she was an "experienced embroiderer" living in Shropshire (221).
• Parenthetical citations: (Young; Fialkov)

Notes

• If no DOI is available and you are accessing the eBook from a CCC Library database, use the eBook's database permalink.

Chapter in a book

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: According to Boys, ....
• Parenthetical citation: The event was publicized as a "protest against the false choices of the two-party system" (LeVan 210).

Notes

• When no page numbers are listed in an eBook, cite with the chapter number in your in-text citation. Example: (Flaubert ch. 4).  
• If there is no editor or edition given, leave out those parts of the citation.
• If no DOI is available and you are accessing the eBook from a CCC Library database, use the eBook's database permalink URL.
• Some citations will require you to repeat elements 3-9. If your resource has more than one container, you need to identify each container in your citation. For example, a chapter in an eBook in a library database has two containers: the eBook (complete steps 3-9 for the eBook) and the database (repeat steps 3-9 for the database).

Newspaper article

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: As Anderson discovered, students had....
• Parenthetical citation: (Isaac; Taylor)

Notes

• No known author: When a source has no known author, begin the citation with the title of the article.
• Access date: This is optional but should be included for sources without a publication date or those that are likely to change.

Webpages and websites

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: According to the MLA Style Center, .... 
• Parenthetical citation: (Modern Language Association)

Notes

• No known author: When a source has no known author, use the title of the webpage instead of an author name.
• Publication date: If the webpage you are citing does not provide a publication date, you should use the copyright date as the publication date in your works-cited-list entry.
• Access date: This is optional but should be included for sources without a publication date or those that are likely to change (e.g., a webpage).
• For Wikipedia articles date and location, use the last archived version of the page and the direct URL to that version so readers can retrieve the version you used.

Generative AI

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: According to "Describe the theme of nature"...
• Parenthetical citation: ... ("Describe the theme of nature").

Basic rules for generative AI

• Author: MLA does not recommend treating the AI tool as an author.
• Title of Source: Describe what was generated by the AI tool.
• Title of Container: Use the Title of Container element to name the AI tool, in italics (e.g., ChatGPT).
• Version: Name the specific AI model or model version as specifically as possible.
• Publisher: Name the company that made the tool.
• Date: Give the date the content was generated.
• Location: Give the stable, shareable URL for accessing the generated content (e.g., text, an image).

Encyclopedia article

This category includes encyclopedias, Wikipedia, online dictionaries, thesaurus, and other reference works. 

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: According to "Scottish Highland Games," the use of kilts....
• Citation in prose: Kuhn argues that each is better off confessing (para. 2).
• Parenthetical citation: ("Unipiper")

Notes

• No known author: When a source has no known author, use a shortened title of the work instead of an author name.
• For Wikipedia articles date and location, use the last archived version of the page and the direct URL to that version so readers can retrieve the version you used. 
• Access date: This is optional but should be included for sources without a publication date or those that are likely to change.
• If no DOI is available and you are accessing the article from a CCC Library database, use the article's database permalink.
• Some citations will require you to repeat elements 3-9. If your resource has more than one container, you need to identify each container in your citation. For example, an entry in an online encyclopedia from a library database has two containers: the encyclopedia (complete steps 3-9 for the encyclopedia) and the database (repeat steps 3-9 for the database).

Presentation slidedecks, webinars 

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: According to Moore and "Welding cracks," the opposition to....
• Parenthetical citation: (Springy Jen)

Notes

• Course names and webinar titles are styled without quotation marks or italics.

Videos, TV shows, YouTube

In-text citations

• Citation in prose: The animation style of KPop Demon Hunters is characterized as....
• Parenthetical citation: ("Middle Ground"; "We fell for the oldest lie")

Notes

• Contributors should include names of individuals to help the reader locate the exact source themselves. These could include executive producers, episode writers, creators, narrators, and more. 
• Access date: This is optional but should be included for sources without a publication date or those that are likely to change.

More MLA citation examples

See Appendix 2, pp. 303-346 of the MLA Handbook for hundreds of example Works Cited entries. We have a copy you can check out and take home, and a copy is always available at the Research Help desk for in-library use.

Not in CCC Library? Ask a librarian to look something up for you.

Missing citation elements

If you are missing core elements of a citation (e.g., no author, no date), this handout helps you build a complete MLA citation using the information you have available.

Google doc

1. Select File
2. Select Make a copy
3. Give the document a name
4. Optional: Select a Folder to save it in
5. Select Make a copy

Word doc

1. Select File
2. Select Download
3. Choose Microsoft Word (.docx)
4. Access the editable file in your internet browser's Downloads folder

PDF

1. Select File
2. Select Download
3. Choose PDF Document (.pdf)
4. Access the printable file in your internet browser's Downloads folder