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How to Cite Reference Books

Citation is important when writing research papers, theses, term papers and dissertations. However, there are different styles of citation, depending on the type of paper you're writing. The standards and conventions set by the Modern Language Association (MLA) have been widely adopted and are appropriate for most papers and citations, especially when writing about language, literature or other courses in the Humanities. The MLA style dictates a short in-text citation in parenthesis which refers the reader to an alphabetized list of citations following the text of the paper.

Instructions

    • 1

      Cite the name of the reference's author or editor on the Works Cited page. Put the last name first and then the given name, with the two separated by a comma and followed by a period.

    • 2

      Write the name of the article or chapter within the reference book you are citing in quotation marks followed by a period, if you only used one article as a reference. Do not include this piece of information if you are citing the whole reference text. Include the title of the book, including the subtitle, in italics. Follow this with a period.

    • 3

      List the place the reference book was published and then the name of the publisher, separated by a colon and ending with a comma and then the date of publication. Include the page numbers on which you found your information if you only used part of the reference book. Place a period at the end.

    • 4

      End the citation by indicating if the book is print --- Print. --- or, for electronic books, by the name of the website, followed by a period, and the word "Web." Then include the date you accessed the site.

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