MLA Citation Style

Works Cited list

Examples

References cited in the text of a research paper must appear at the end of the paper in a Works Cited list or bibliography. This list provides the information necessary to identify and retrieve each source that specifically supports your research.

Arrange entries in alphabetical order by authors' last names (surnames), or by title for sources without authors.

Capitalize the first word and all other principle words of the titles and subtitles of cited works listed. (Do not capitalize articles, prepositions, coordinating conjunctions, or the "to" in infinitives.)

Shorten the publisher's name.

When multiple publishers are listed, include all of them, placing a semicolon between each.

When more than one city is listed for the same publisher, use only the first city.

Use the conjunction "and," not an ampersand [&], when listing multiple authors of a single work.

Pagination : Do not use the abbreviations p. or pp. to designate page numbers.

Indentation : Align the first line of the entry flush with the left margin, and indent all subsequent lines (5 to 7 spaces) to form a "hanging indent."

Underlining vs. italics : In printed material submitted for grading or editing, words that would be italicized in a publication are usually underlined to avoid ambiguity. If you wish to use italics rather than underlining, check your instructor's or editor's preferences.