MLA Style
1. in-text citations
2. signal phrases
3. Works Cited page
MLA style is a specific way of citing research used in essays, and it is broken up into two main
categories:
• in-text citations: citing quotes, summaries, statistics, or any ideas borrowed from other
writers in the body of your own essay.
• works cited page: A page at the end of your essay that lists publication information of
the research you used so that the reader can look it up if needed.
Pay close attention to the format employed in both categories. Proper citations are also needed
to avoid plagiarizing.
1. in-text citations
In-text citations are just how you cite a quote in the body of your essay, before the Works Cited
page. Parenthetical Documentation is the author’s name put in parentheses at the end of research used (the info is inside parentheses, thus parenthetical documentation).
Whether the borrowed information is a quote, summary, or paraphrase, the requirement is the
same: provide the source’s information in parentheses (usually the author’s name and page
number of the quote).
for example:
•
exact quote: “Billboards represent less than 2 percent of total advertising in the United
States” (Ogilvy 102).
•
paraphrase: Billboards make up a minimal portion of the advertising world (Ogilvy 102).
note: the punctuation goes after the parenthetical documentation in these cases.
If there is no author name given, then use the title of the article, or a portion of it.
•
exact quote: “Billboards represent less than 2 percent of total advertising in the United
States” (“Print Ads” 102).
Whether or not the language is borrowed word for word, any info taken from elsewhere must be
cited. Otherwise it is plagiarism.
note: avoid using encyclopedias in academic essays. Sources like Wikipedia are fine for general information, but Wikipedia should not be used as a source in an essay for this class. Focus on legitimate periodicals, books, and LBCC’s online databases.
It is often better not to use very long quotes, but sometimes it is needed. When doing so, a specific
style is used. With quotes of more than four typed lines, it is necessary to indent the entire passage.
for example:
Americans take their ads too seriously. Many of us feel that ads dictate what we should be doing
with our money, how we should look, and, even in some cases, what is right and wrong about our lives.
But it is not completely our own fault -- perhaps we are just victims of our environment.
American companies manufacture status symbols because American consumers want
them. As Alexis de Tocqueville recognized a century and a half ago, the competitive nature
of democratic societies breeds a desire for social distinction, a yearning to rise above the
crowd. (Solomon 49)
indent ten spaces no quotation marks
punctuation goes before the citation here
2. signal phrases
To make your writing more fluid when using research, introduce the borrowed information to your
readers by using signal phrases with your in-text citations.
There are many different signal phrases to choose from.
for example:
• As Adam Yauch has noted, “blah blah blah” (234).
• According to Phil Rizzuto, “woo woo woo” (132).
The signal phrase can also go in between or at the end of the quote:
• “Blah blah blah wee,” writes Hank Mobley, “woo woo woo” (38).
• “Woo wee woo,” notes Sheila Easton (67).
It can also be helpful to give a bit of information about the people being quoted:
• Radio host Billy Bathgate offer a persuasive counter argument: “Woo blah wee”
(17).
• “Wee blah woo,” claims wireless spokesperson Annette Funicello (44).
note: When using the author’s name in a signal phrase, it isn’t needed in the parenthetical
documentation too.
sample verbs to use in signal phrases:
writes
disputes
confirms
contends
declares
denies
comments
points out
observes
implies
insists
endorses
notes
grants
illustrates
thinks
responds
suggests
reasons
refutes
rejects
reports
claims
believes
adds
admits
agrees
argues
asserts
emphasizes
3. Works Cited page
The Works Cited page goes at the end of your essay and is formatted in a specific and particular
way. Each type of source has its own type of formatting, so make sure and pay close attention to
formatting to avoid deductions in your grade.
Works Cited is its own page
title is centered,
not in quotes,
not underlined,
no italics
Smith 7!
!
Works Cited
"Health Care Reform." Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 19 Apr. 2010.
Web. 20 Apr. 2010.
Levey, Noam. “Report: Medicare Fund Eight Years From Insolvency.” Los Angeles Times
Article Collections. Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2009. Web. 19 April 2010.
Saad, Lydia. “By Slim Margin, Americans Support Healthcare Bill's Passage.” Gallup. Gallup,
23 March 2010. Web. 24 April 2010.
Tully,!Shawn.!“5!Freedoms!you’d!lose!in!Health!Care!Reform.”!CNN#Money.!CNN,!24!July!2009.!
!
Web.!19!April!2010.!
“United States.” The World Factbook. CIA, 22 April 2010. Web. 23 April 2010.
don’t
number
entries
indent
extra
lines
!
arrange
alphabetically
only list sources actually used in the essay
last name
& page number
tips:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
your last name and page number go in the upper right hand margin (1/2 inch down)
title the page Works Cited, centered and capitalized
do not underline or put Works Cited in quotes
do not number the entries on the Works Cited page
make sure it begins on a separate page from the end of the essay
make sure entries are in alphabetical order
if the entries go to two lines, make sure the second line is indented
only list sources that you actually used in the essay
The entry format depends on the type of source it is (book, article, online database, YouTube
video, etc). Make sure you provide the correct style for the right type of text. For example, don’t
assume all books are the same:
• the essays and articles in Common Culture should be documented as A work in an Anthology,
not as A Book by One Author.
• Information found on a general website is not the same as info from one of LBCC’s online databases.
• a print article is formatted differently than an online newspaper article.
Most Works Cited entries will include the author’s name, title, publisher, and place and year of
publication, among other bits of info.
• The title and author’s name are easy enough to find.
• To locate the place and year of publication, turn to the first few pages of the book to
the title page. The place of publication is usually by the name or logo of the publishing
house, and the year of publication is by the copyright logo on the back of the page.