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MLA Style: 8th edition: Citations

MLA 8th Edition Style Guide. Includes information on formatting for Works Cited page and within paper.

Citation Examples

 

MLA 8th Edition Citations 

 

How to use this section:

The above tabs each represent different types of sources you will encounter while researching and writing your papers.  Each tab has an example of how the source should be referenced on the Works Cited page and for in-text citation. Below are some helpful examples from the Writing Lab on how in-text citations are used.  

 

Be sure to download these documents created for you:  (see boxes on the lower left side of this page)

  • our MLA Citation Style QuickGuide which has the same information that has been separated into the categories on the tabbed menu above.
  • the MLA Practice Template to prepare your sources.

 

Each campus has a Writing Lab to assist you with your paper and this includes MLA 8 help.  Call the campus Library and Learning Center to check times and make an appointment.  Phone numbers are on the Home page.

OWL - Purdue's Online Writing Lab - has excellent helpful resources as well.

 

 

Graphic to explain the parts of a citation:

Citations Explanation via graphic that breaks down and explains each part of the citation.

 

 

Book MLA 8 citation example - for a book with 1 author (See p. 21 and sec. 1.6.2, MLA Handbook)

Chapter, article or essay MLA 8 citation example

Edited book MLA 8 citation example

MLA 8 Film citation example

 

MLA 8 Performance citation example

Poem or short story MLA 8 citation example

Presentation, speech, lecture or reading MLA 8 citation example

 

Oral Citation or Reference

 

If you are looking for information on how to properly cite a source while you are giving a speech or presentation, use these guidelines:

  • Note: Be sure to give enough information about your source that someone can easily find it.
    • Any of these identifiers can be shared if they will help your listener find the source you are referring to:  author, date, title of work, publication, web sources, or editor.

 



MLA 8 Music score citation example

Social media post citation MLA 8 example

Unpublished interview MLA 8 citation example

US Law MLA 8th Edition Citation Examples

Websites and webpages citation examples

MLA Citation Style QuickGuide

MLA Container Sheet

The MLA Practice Template sheet  was developed by Professor Ubl to help students.  

 

Tip:  If you print it front to back, there will be room to prepare four sources.

See completed example sheets below for help on how to fill out the container document.

Examples of Completed MLA 8 Citations

Our thanks to Professor Ubl for these documents.

MLA Citation Style Guide Color Key

MLA 8 Citation Style QuickGuide Color Key • Works cited list entries (column 1a below) usually contain the following core elements: 1. Author/creator is in red. See the examples in this guide for sources with multiple or unknown authors. 2. Title of source. Titles of sources that are part of a larger work are placed in quotation marks. Titles of independent works are italicized. 3. Title of container, for any works that are part of a larger whole. A single source may have multiple containers. E.g. a journal article found in a database has two containers: the journal and the database. Each container may have its own contributors, versions, numbers, and so on. 4. Other contributors, when specified, such as editors or translators. 5. Version, when specified. E.g. a specific edition of a book. 6. Number, for works that are part of numbered sequences. E.g. a volume of a book, or a volume and issue of a journal article. 7. Publisher: the organization responsible for producing the work or making it public. 8. Publication date. See the examples in this guide for date variations and formats. 9. Location, when applicable. Depending on the source, this may include page numbers, a DOI (digital object identifier), or a URL. When a DOI is provided, it should be used instead of a URL. 10. Optional elements should be included in some cases. E.g. the original date of publication for a republished work, the source type for “unexpected” formats such as lectures, the date of access for a webpage.