How to Cite in MLA Format Guide With Examples

The group that focuses on language and literature is called the Modern Language Association (MLA).

Your professor can require that you cite your sources using the MLA format, depending on the topic area that your class or study focuses on. Following the rules set forth by the Modern Language Association, this is a specific manner to cite. Although there are alternative formats, like APA and Chicago, the MLA format is frequently used for courses in literature, language, liberal arts, and other disciplines. This manual discusses this format in great detail but is not affiliated with the company. We provide the best Dissertation help online at Dissertation Sky.

It’s crucial to credit the original author when you use material from a source in your study or project. Making an MLA citation does this. You may include citations in both the body of your project and a works-cited list at the conclusion of your project, depending on the material you’re including. Are you someone looking to Write my dissertation UK? Visit our website at Dissertation Sky.

The manual provides instructions on how to make MLA citations. The information in the ninth version of the manual is compiled on this page.

Below is a section with instructions on how to format an MLA header. These headers are located at the top of each page of your work. Ask your instructor if there is a specific MLA format they prefer for the heading.

What does MLA stand for?

The most recent and updated edition for MLA citations is the 9th edition. Released in April 2021, this version’s citation structure is a little different than earlier ones. This update comes after the 8th edition’s 2016 update, which included a number of noteworthy revisions from earlier versions.

Using a single standard format for all source kinds was the largest difference and most interesting update for the 8th edition. In earlier iterations, academics had to find the citation style for the particular source they utilized. For instance, books, websites, journals, and other media all have varied forms. After 2016, employing a single, universal MLA citation style enables researchers to spend more time on their work and less time attempting to find the right format to cite their sources.

“Containers” were another addition to the upgrades. A container gives information about a work that is a part of a bigger work. For instance, albums of music contain songs, books have chapters, and journals contain journal articles. The container is a smaller work contained within the source, such as a short tale on the website. The source is the bigger work, such as a website.

MLA now recommends you include DOIs or URLs with citations. When a DOI is available, use it instead of a URL. You can often omit HTTP:// or HTTPS:// from URLs unless you intend to hyperlink them, according to the MLA 9th edition. Use HTTP:// or HTTPS:// before the DOI (e.g., https://doi.org/xx.xxxx/xxx.xxxx.xxxx) when referencing a DOI.

The author’s true name may be replaced with usernames and pseudonyms on social media. The terms “vol.” and “no.” are now used rather of volume and issue numbers. Citations no longer indicate the source’s cities of publication or its media (such as print or online). If you’re referring to academic presses or publishers, abbreviate “university” to “U” and “press” to “P” (Cambridge UP). When putting seasons in the date field of a reference, use lowercase (spring 2021 not Spring 2021).

Basic Citations

You must provide an MLA citation when incorporating material from another source to your project. In-text citations and full citations are the two forms of citations used in MLA style.

The MLA format “Works Cited” page, which is often the concluding part of a project, contains a complete list of all sources utilized for that research.

Full Citation Basics:

The following details are frequently included in MLA citation styles, in this order:

Author’s first and last names. Title of the Source Container title, additional authors, version, numbers, publisher, publication date, and place.

See the sections below on author names, titles, containers, names of other contributors, source versions, numbers, publishers, publishing dates, and places for further details about each individual element as well as the necessary formatting guidelines. Marketing Dissertation Topics are available at Dissertation SKy.

Below is a sample page for the works-cited list in MLA style, along with additional detailed guidelines.

Remember that you can easily and quickly construct your citations with our BibMe MLA citation generator!

Components of citations

Authors: 

Typically, the name of the author appears first in a citation (unless the source does not have an author). After the author’s name, a period follows.

Place the last name first, followed by a comma, and the first name if the source only has one author.

MLA style:

. Harper Lee

1. Scott Fitzgerald

Put the authors in the same order as they are listed in the source if it has two authors. The first author is recorded in reverse order, followed by the second author’s name in normal form, a comma, and the word “and.” Put a semicolon after each of their characters.

Example:

Jory John, Avery, and Monsen.

Only the name of the first author is provided when there are three or more writers. The first author’s name should be spelled backward (Last name, First name), followed by a comma, then the Latin word “et al.”

Examples:

Travis Fimmel is a performer. Vikings. Michael Hirst, History Channel, 2013–2016 creator.

John T. Gage is the editor. the book Studies in the New Rhetoric: The Promise of Reason. 2011; SIU Press

The following table can be used as a guide for arranging author names:

Citations for Photographs: 

The simplest citation for a photograph includes the name of the photographer, the title of the image, the name of the book, website, or collection where the image can be found, the publisher of the image or the place where the image appeared, the date the image was published or taken, and the page number, location of the museum (such as a city and state), or URL if found online.

Format:

Last name and first name of the photographer. “The Photograph’s Title.” Title of the journal (book, website, collection, or another kind) where the picture was located, Date of the photo’s capture, No. of Pages (if applicable), Location or URL where the image may be located (if required, include a city and state).

start with the primary author or photographer’s name (if available). The name of this individual has to be inverted, with a period after the first name and a comma after the last name (and any middle name).

Include the title of the image in quotation marks, followed by a period, if it was borrowed from a book or website. If the image doesn’t already have a formal title, give it one. If you create your own description, just capitalise the description’s first word and any proper nouns that it contains. The description shouldn’t be in quotes or italics.

Social media citation in MLA style:

Social media posts are frequently used in research initiatives and academic articles. The pattern that most social media citations follow is as follows:

@Username (First name Last name, if known, and differs from handle). Social Media Platform, “Text of Post,” Posting date and URL.

Include a description of the image if the post is an image or photo rather than words. Only the initial letter of the description and the first letter of any proper nouns should be capitalized. The description should not be encircled in quotation marks.

Citations for Music: How to Reference an Online Song

To reference a source of this kind, format the reference as follows:

Last name, first name, OR band name of the performer. The song’s title. Version, Date Published, URL, Other Contributors and their roles (if relevant), Title of Website or Service

Ms. Jennifer Lopez Spotify, “Us,” 2 February 2018, available at open.spotify.com/track/2MMvonKGALz6YOJwaKDO3q.

Using a downloaded or an album song:

Last name, first name, OR band name of the performer. The song’s title. The album title, publisher, version, other contributors and their roles (if relevant), and the date it was released or published.

LOVE?, Pitbull performance of “On the Floor,” Jennifer Lopez, Island, 2011.

Film citations: 

A film’s title, director, publisher, and year of release make up the most basic entry. Depending on who the emphasis of your study is, you may also decide to add the names of the writer(s), performer(s), and producer(s). You can also name specific people to assist readers in finding the precise source on their own.

A typical example of how to reference a movie

Film name. First name as the Director Last name, First Name’s performance Last Name, Year, and Publisher

The film is BibMe. 2017’s New York Stories, directed by John Smith, with a performance by Jane Doe.

TV/Radio Citations: 

The most fundamental MLA style citation for a radio or television show includes the names of the creators (if they are significant to your study), the episode title, program/series name, broadcasting network or publisher, the original broadcast date, and the URL.

The 100’s Highlights NBC, Seinfeld, 2 February 1995.

If the subject of your study is an identifiable person from a television or radio program, start your citation with that person’s name in the author position.

You might also decide to provide the names of the people working on the software if that makes sense. Put the names of the cast and crew after the name of the show or series, depending on whether they are important to the particular episode or the whole run. You can use “narrated by,” “written by,” “directed by,” “performed by,” and/or “produced by” before citing the specific names of the narrator(s), writer(s), director(s), performer(s), and/or producer(s). Include whatever many people you want. Do not write the first and last names of the persons listed here backward.

Citations for Lectures:

 The bare minimum entry for a lecture includes the speaker’s name, the topic of the presentation, the date the lecture was held, and the name and location of the venue.

Last name and first name of the speaker The lecture’s title. Date, location, and place of the event.

Randy Pausch Achieving Your Childhood Dreams in Real Life. Pittsburgh’s McConomy Auditorium, September 18, 2007.

Put the speaker’s name first in the citation. The name of this individual needs to be flipped. If the lecture has a title, include italics and a period after the title in the authority. The lecture’s date should be mentioned, followed by a comma. Your source should end with the name of the place/venue where it happened and the city where it happened, separated by a comma.

Citations for Lectures: 

The bare minimum entry for a lecture includes the speaker’s name, the topic of the presentation, the date the lecture was held, and the name and location of the venue.

Last name and first name of the speaker The lecture’s title. Date, location, and place of the event.

Randy Pausch Achieving Your Childhood Dreams in Real Life. Pittsburgh’s McConomy Auditorium, September 18, 2007.

Put the speaker’s name first in the citation. The name of this individual needs to be flipped. If the lecture has a title, include italics and a period after the title in the source. The lecture’s date should be mentioned, followed by a comma. Your citation should end with the name of the place/venue where it happened and the city where it happened, separated by a comma.