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MLA Style In-Text Citations
Why do we need in-text (parenthetical) citations?
Citations are needed to give credit. As stated within the MLA Handbook, Eighth Edition, “The
in-text citation should direct the reader unambiguously to the entry in your works-cited list for
the source…while creating the least possible interruption in your text” (54). In-Text Citations
are generally a guide within the paper to the works cited page, providing further credit to
the original author. This guide is used to locate quotes and paraphrased or summarized words
within the borrowed works.
MLA stands for Modern Language Association and is used in English, foreign languages, and
some other humanities courses.
MLA Style - In-Text Citations: 2
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Basics of In-text Citation
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To prevent plagiarism in MLA style as well as in all college papers, MLA style cites sources
within the body of the paper, called in-text or parenthetical citing.
1. Correct in-text citing depends upon the type of source, but the basic structure is to
cite by
 the author or authors’ last name(s) and page number (if from a textbook, journal,
magazine, and other paginated sources, etc.)
 only by the author or authors’ last name(s) if the source does not have page
numbers.
2. If the name of a specific author cannot be found, cite by organization name.
3. If there is no apparent name of a person, people, or organization, cite by the title of
the source.
Note: The sources that you cite in your paper need to be included in your Works Cited list!
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Two Different Ways to Cite (in-text) within the Paper
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Using the author’s name as part of the sentence
 When the author’s name is used as part of the sentence, cite only the page number
within the parenthesis. The period follows the citation as though the citation is
part of the sentence.
Note: When a source contains more than one author, ALL of them should be
cited.
 Do not use abbreviations for page, such as p. or pg.; cite only by the numerical
digit.
 If source does not include a page number, nothing needs to go within the
parenthesis except for citing lines of poetry, verses from the Bible, and dialogue
from a play.
Example:
Thomas Modern claims that “MLA Style of formatting is the easiest style to use”
(45).
 The author’s last name is cited along with the page number.
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Example:
The expert of writing claims, “MLA Style of formatting is the easiest style to use”
(Modern 45).
Example of a citation where quoted portion came from page 10 of Robert
M. Townsend’s book, The Medieval Village Economy:
In-text: “grain” (Townsend 10).
Within sentence: Townsend states, “grain” (10).
Note: Regardless of the information’s container, the period will always follow
the citation and will appear outside of the quotation marks.
The author’s name is not used.
1. Citing Work Listed by Organization:
 For a work that does not contain an author, cite by the name of the organization
that sponsored the source.
 In the below cited example, the organization Spy Unlimited is the name of the
organization that sponsored an article. The source does not contain page
numbers.
Example:
International espionage was as prevalent as ever in the 1990s (Spy Unlimited).
2. Citing Work Listed by Title:
 When the source does not contain the name of the author(s) or an organization,
cite by the title.
 If the title is short, list the full title. If the title is long, shorten it by using the first
few words of the title, followed by the reference number (such as page number), if
one is available.
 Enclose the title within quotation marks.
Example:
International espionage was as prevalent as ever in the 1990s (“Decade”).
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Same Source in Multiple Ways
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1. When citing a source the first time, use the author’s name(s) unless the name is used
as part of the sentence that introduces the source’s text.
2. When citing same source again, cite only by page number (if source has one) for
subsequent citations unless you switch sources (i.e., use another source).
One Work by One Author, Multiple Pages:
 Give only the author’s last name and page numbers to cite the book.
Examples:
In-text: (Patterson 183-84.)
Within sentence: Patterson describes. . . (183-84).
Note: Instead of 183-184, MLA style writes page numbers three digits and more as 183-84.
Citing More than One Work in a Single Parenthetical Reference:
 These multiple citations are generally used with paraphrased or summarized
citing. For direct quoting, the corresponding citation follows each quote.
 Cite each work in the same fashion as in a single reference, but use semicolons to
separate the citations.
 For the order of citing (i.e., which source is cited first), alphabetize by the
authors’ last name.
Example: (Fukuyama 42; McRae 101-33).
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Multiple Authors
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More than One Author with the Same Last Name within the Paper:
1. If your paper contains sources by more than one author with the same last name,
add the first initial.
Example: (A. Patterson 183-84) and (I. Patterson 230).
2. If the first initial is the same for both authors, add the first full name.
Example: (Anthony Patterson 183-84) and (Aaron Patterson 230).
MLA Style - In-Text Citations: 5
One Work by Three Authors:
Basic Notes:
 Give the last names of all three authors.
 Cite in the same order as shown on the source.
 A comma is needed between the authors’ names, including before the name of the
last author.
Examples:
In-text: (Rabkin, Lindscombe, and Olander 165).
Within sentence: Rabkin, Lindscombe, and Olander explain, “quote” (165).
Work with More than Three Authors:
Basic Notes:
 Give the first author’s last name followed by et al., without any intervening
punctuation.
Example: (Lauter et al. 2601-09).
 Or, give all authors’ last names.
Example: (Lauter, Greene, Adams, and Smith 2601-09).
 Citing must be the same for the source throughout the paper. If first citation uses
et al., it must stay with et al. (A comma is not used between the last name of the
author and et al.)
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Web Publication with No Pagination or Other Reference Marker
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1. Web publications rarely contain page numbers.
2. Cite in one of two ways:
 Include the name of the person cited within the text.
Example 1:
Chan considers the same topic in the context of Hong Kong cinema.
 Include the author’s name in parenthesis.
Example 2:
The utilitarian of the Victorians “attempted to reduce decision-making about
human actions to a ‘felicifa calculus’ ” (Everett).
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Punctuation and Placement of Parenthetical References
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To avoid interrupting the flow of a sentence:
 Place the parenthetical reference where a pause would naturally occur (preferably
at the end of a sentence), as near as possible to the material documented.
Punctuation:
 The period that concludes the sentence, clause, or phrase containing the borrowed
material follows the parenthetical reference as though the in-text citation were part
of the sentence.
Example of paraphrased/summarized citation:
In his Autobiography, Benjamin Franklin states that he prepared a list of thirteen
virtues (135-37).
Punctuation of a quotation:
 The reference is inserted directly after a quote, and punctuation follows the
citation.
Example:
In the late Renaissance, Machiavelli contended that human beings were by nature,
“ungrateful” and “mutable” (1240), and Montaigne thought them “miserable and
puny” (1343).
 When the quote is followed by a question mark or exclamation point, both must
be used before the last set of quotation marks, and a period ends the citation.
Example:
When he saw the gruesome scene, the investigator Andrews exclaimed, “Oh! This
is terrible!” (Harrison and Tyler 140).
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Work Cited
MLA Handbook, Eighth Edition. The Modern Language Association of America, 2016,
pp. 61-128.
Created by Austin Peay State University, 29 August 2016