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Citing Sources: MLA 8 Works Cited

Guides for citing sources in MLA and APA format

What are you citing?

Tips

  • If no author or creator is provided, start the citation with the title/name of the item you are citing instead.
  • When putting works in alphabetical order, ignore initial articles such as "the", "a", or "an". For example the title The Best of Canada would be alphabetized as if it started with the word Best instead of the word The. If the title begins with a number, alphabetize it as if the number was spelled out. For example the title 5 Ways to Succeed in Business would be alphabetized under F as if it had started with the word Five .

  • If no date is provided, skip that information. It's recommended that you add the date you accessed the work at the end of the citation for sites that change often (like social media, blogs, wikipedia, etc.). Access date is given by putting the word "Accessed" followed by the Day Month (Shortened) Year the work was accessed/viewed. For example Accessed 20 Aug 2016.

  • Page numbers may not be provided for some items, such as online materials. If this is the case leave the page numbers out of the citation.

  • Use this MLA 8 Container Template to help you. 

What are you citing?

Tips

  • If no author or creator is provided, start the citation with the title/name of the item you are citing instead.
  • When putting works in alphabetical order, ignore initial articles such as "the", "a", or "an". For example the title The Best of Canada would be alphabetized as if it started with the word Best instead of the word The. If the title begins with a number, alphabetize it as if the number was spelled out. For example the title 5 Ways to Succeed in Business would be alphabetized under F as if it had started with the word Five .

  • If no date is provided, skip that information. It's recommended that you add the date you accessed the work at the end of the citation for sites that change often (like social media, blogs, wikipedia, etc.). Access date is given by putting the word "Accessed" followed by the Day Month (Shortened) Year the work was accessed/viewed. For example Accessed 20 Aug 2016.

  • Page numbers may not be provided for some items, such as online materials. If this is the case leave the page numbers out of the citation.

  • Use this MLA 8 Container Template to help you. 

What are you citing?

Tips

  • If no author or creator is provided, start the citation with the title/name of the item you are citing instead.
  • When putting works in alphabetical order, ignore initial articles such as "the", "a", or "an". For example the title The Best of Canada would be alphabetized as if it started with the word Best instead of the word The. If the title begins with a number, alphabetize it as if the number was spelled out. For example the title 5 Ways to Succeed in Business would be alphabetized under F as if it had started with the word Five .

  • If no date is provided, skip that information. It's recommended that you add the date you accessed the work at the end of the citation for sites that change often (like social media, blogs, wikipedia, etc.). Access date is given by putting the word "Accessed" followed by the Day Month (Shortened) Year the work was accessed/viewed. For example Accessed 20 Aug 2016.

  • Page numbers may not be provided for some items, such as online materials. If this is the case leave the page numbers out of the citation.

  • Use this MLA 8 Container Template to help you. 

What are you citing?

Tips

  • If no author or creator is provided, start the citation with the title/name of the item you are citing instead.
  • When putting works in alphabetical order, ignore initial articles such as "the", "a", or "an". For example the title The Best of Canada would be alphabetized as if it started with the word Best instead of the word The. If the title begins with a number, alphabetize it as if the number was spelled out. For example the title 5 Ways to Succeed in Business would be alphabetized under F as if it had started with the word Five .

  • If no date is provided, skip that information. It's recommended that you add the date you accessed the work at the end of the citation for sites that change often (like social media, blogs, wikipedia, etc.). Access date is given by putting the word "Accessed" followed by the Day Month (Shortened) Year the work was accessed/viewed. For example Accessed 20 Aug 2016.

  • Page numbers may not be provided for some items, such as online materials. If this is the case leave the page numbers out of the citation.

  • Use this MLA 8 Container Template to help you. 

What are you citing?

Seneca College Libraries

This guide is used/adapted with the permission of Seneca College Libraries. For information please contact lcc@senecacollege.ca.

Note: When copying this guide, please retain this box.

Journal & Magazine Articles

from a database (website URLs for databases are optional in MLA 8--ask your teacher for preference):

Author's Last Name, First Name, and Second Author's First Name Last Name. "Title of Article: Subtitle if Any." Name of Journal, vol. Volume

Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number-Last Page Number. Name of Database, website without the https://. 

Bosch, James Vanden, and David Crump. "Divorce and the Congregation." Books and Culture, Mar.-Apr. 2012, p. 22. Academic OneFile. 

"Canned Soda?" Restaurants and Institutions, 15 Sept. 2005, p. 16. Academic OneFile. 

Guillen, Jorge. "Does Financial Openness Matter in the Relationship Between Financial Development and Income Distribution in Latin

America?" Emerging Markets Finance & Trade, vol. 52, no. 5, 2016, pp. 1145-1155. Business Source  Premier,

doi:10.1080/1540496X.2015.1046337.

Larr, Allison S., and Matthew Neidell. "Pollution and Climate Change." The Future of Children, vol. 26, no. 1, Spring 2016, pp. 93-113. Expanded

Academic ASAP

Leichty, Toni. "Yes I Worry About My Weight... But for the Most Part I'm Content with My Body: Older Women's Body Dissatisfaction Alongside

Contentment." Journal of Women & Aging, vol. 24, no. 1, 2012, pp. 70-88. Academic Search Premier. 

from a website:

Author's Last Name, First Name, and Second Author's First Name Last Name. "Title of Article: Subtitle if Any." Name of Journal, vol. Volume

Number, no. Issue Number, Date of Publication, pp. First Page Number- Last Page Number if Given, URL.

Cosh, Kolby. "Tiny Human Brains Threaten Giant Dinosaur Bones in Alberta." Macleans, 25 July 2012, www.macleans.ca/news/canada/a-blight-

at-the-museum. 

Sadig, Husam, and Ahmed Banany. "The Impact of Non-Response Weighting: Empirical Evidence From Modelling Residential Mobility." Journal

of Social Research & Policy, vol. 5, no. 1, July 2014, pp. 91-99, www.jsrp.ro/site/jrspone/content/JSRP_Vol5_Iss1_Sadig.

from print:

Ki, Eyun-Jung, and Linda Childers Hon. "A Measure of Relationship Cultivation Strategies." Journal of Public Relations Research, vol. 21, no. 1,

2009, pp. 1-24.

Kushkova, Anna. "At the Center of the Table." Russian Studies in History, vol. 50, no.1, 2011, pp. 44-96.

Loney, Sydney. "Family Fare." Today's Parent, Jan. 2012, pp. 59-61. 

"Outsmart Your Cravings." Prevention, 30 Jan. 2008, p. 45. 

Newspaper Articles

from a database:

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article: Subtitle if Any." Name of Newspaper [city of newspaper if city name not in name], Date of

Publication, p. Page number if given. Name of Database. 

Schmidt, Sarah. "Companies Fail the Test; Junk Food Marketing Aimed at Kids Faulted." The Gazette [Montreal], 10 Mar. 2010, p.

A.11. Canadian Newsstand. 

from a website:

Morrison, Malcolm. "TSX Recovers on Greece News." Toronto Star, 23 June 2011,  www.thestar.com/business/

            economy/2011/06/23/tsx_recovers_on_greece_news.html. 

from print:

Smith, Bill. "Talks on Bosnia Bog Down Over Borders." Toronto Star, 18 Aug. 2012, p. B6. 

Books & eBooks

Book in Print with One Author

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any. Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of

publication. 

Kirsh, Steven J. Children, Adolescents, and Media Violence: A Critical Look at the Research. 2nd ed., Sage, 2006. 

Book in Print with Two Authors

Wykes, Maggie, and Barrie Gunter. The Media and Body Image: If Looks Could Kill. Sage, 2005.

Book in Print with Three or More Authors

Nickels, William, et al. Understanding Canadian Business. 9th ed., McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2016.

Book with a Corporate Author

Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation. Employability Skills: Creating My Future, Nelson, 1996. 

eBooks from a Library Database

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any. Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of

publication. Name of Library Database.

Block, Bruce A. The Visual Story: Creating the Visual Structure of Film, TV and Digital Media. Focal P/Elsevier, 2008. ebrary.

Jamsa, Kris, and Andy Anderson. HTML and Web Design: Tips and Techniques, McGraw- Hill/Osborne, 2002. EBSCO eBook and

Audiobook Collection.

Ziarek, Ewa Plonowska, et al. A Time for the Humanities: Futurity and the Limits of Autonomy, Fordham UP, 2008. EBSCO eBook

and Audiobook Collection.

eBook from a Website

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Book: Subtitle if Any. Edition if given and is not first edition, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of

publication, Website Name, URL

Henty, George Alfred. The Cat of Bubastes: A Tale of Ancient Egypt. Blackie and Son, 1889. HathiTrust Digital Library,

 babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015073478847. 

Short Story, Essay or Article from a Book (Anthology or Collection)

Author of Story's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Short Story, Essay, or Article." Title of Book: Subtitle if Any, edited by Editor's First Name and

Last Name, Edition if given and is not first, Publisher Name often shortened, Year of publication, Page numbers of the essay, article, or

short story. 

Ross, Colin. "The Story of Grey Owl." Fiction/Non-Fiction: A Reader and Rhetoric, edited by Garry Engkent and Lucia Engkent, 2nd

ed., Thomson Nelson, 2006, pp. 327-333. 

 

Websites

Tips: It can sometimes be difficult to find out who the author of a website is. Remember that an author can be a corporation or group, not only a specific person. Author information can sometimes be found under an "About" section on a website. If there is no known author, start the citation with the title of the website instead. The best date to use for a website is the date that the content was last updated. Otherwise look for a copyright or original publication date. Unfortunately this information may not be provided or may be hard to find. Often date information is put on the bottom of the pages of a website. If you do not know the complete date, put as much information as you can find. For example you may have a year but no month or day.

If you don't have a date of publication or you're using a site that changes often, make sure to include the optional Accessed date at the end of the entry. 

Use this handy template provided by NoodleTools to help you. 

Page on a Website Created by a Corporation, Institution or Group

Name of Corporation/Group/Organization. "Title of Section." Title of Website, Publisher or Sponsoring Organization, Date of publication or last modified date, URL. Accessed access date.

"Audit and Assurance." Chartered Professional Accountants Canada, 2016, www.cpacanada.ca/en/business-and-accounting-resources/audit-

and-assurance. Accessed 6 July 2016.

Website with a Known Author

Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of Website, Name of Organization Affiliated with the Website, Date of copyright or date last modified/updated, URL. Accessed access date.

Mabillard, Amanda. Shakespeare Online, 29 Dec. 2011, www.shakespeare-online.com. Accessed 6 July 2016.

Page or Document on a Website with a Known or Unknown Author

Doyle, Jack. "Four Dead in O-hi-o, 1970." The Pop History Dig, 11 July 2016, www.pophistorydig.com/topics/kent-state-shootings/. Accessed 27

July 2017.

"How to Teach Yourself Guitar." eHow, Demand Media, www.ehow.com/how_5298173_teach-yourself-guitar.html. Accessed 24 June 2016.

Poncelet, Barbara. "Mom Am I Fat?: Helping Your Teen Have a Positive Body Image." Verywell.com, About Inc., 20 Apr. 2016, 

www.verywell.com/mom-am-i-fat-3200843. Accessed 7 July 2016.

Magazine/Journal/Newspaper Article published on a website

Cosh, Kolby. "Tiny Human Brains Threaten Giant Dinosaur Bones in Alberta." Macleans, 25 July 2012, www.macleans.ca/news/canada/a-blight-

at-the-museum. Accessed 7 July 2016.

Morrison, Malcolm. "TSX Recovers on Greece News." thestar.com, Toronto Star, 23 June 2011, www.thestar.com

/business/economy/2011/06/23/tsx_recovers_on_greece_news.html. Accessed 24 June 2013.

Sadig, Husam, and Ahmed Banany. "The Impact of Non-Response Weighting: Empirical Evidence From Modelling Residential Mobility." Journal

of Social Research & Policy, vol. 5, no. 1, July 2014, pp. 91-99, www.jsrp.ro/site/jrspone/content/JSRP_Vol5_Iss1_Sadig. Accessed 7

July 2016.

Reference Articles published on a website

"Body Image." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 16 June 2016, 7:41 pm, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_image.

"Filibuster." Merriam-Webster's Learners Dictionary, Merriam-Webster. www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/filibuster. Accessed 27 June 2016.

McLean, Steve. "The Tragically Hip." The Canadian Encyclopedia, 26 Mar. 2015, Historica Canada. www. thecanadianencyclopedia.com/en/

article/the-tragically-hip-emc.

Encyclopedias/Dictionaries

from a database:

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Entry." Title of Encyclopedia or Dictionary, edited by Editor's First Name Last Name, Edition if given

and not first edition, vol. Volume Number, Publisher Name, Date of Publication, pp. First Page - Last Page. Name of Database. 

Davidson, Tish. "Anorexia Nervosa." The Gale Encyclopedia of Diets: A Guide to Health and Nutrition, edited by Kristin Key, 2nd ed., vol. 1,

Gale, 2013, pp. 52-57. Gale Virtual Reference Library.

"Shakespeare, William." Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, World Book, 2016. Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia.

from a website:

"Title of Entry." Title of Encyclopedia or Dictionary, Publication or Update DateName of Website. URL. 

"Body Image." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 16 June 2016, 7:41 pm, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_image.

"Filibuster." Merriam-Webster. www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/filibuster. Accessed 27 June 2016.

McLean, Steve. "The Tragically Hip." The Canadian Encyclopedia, 26 Mar. 2015, Historica Canada. www. thecanadianencyclopedia.com/en/

article/the-tragically-hip-emc. Accessed 27 June 2016.

in print:

Barber, Russell J. "Anthropological Ethics." Ethics, edited by John K. Roth, Rev. ed., vol. 1, Salem Press, 2005, pp. 67-69. 

"Guyana" Oxford Encyclopedia of World History, compiled by Market House Books, Oxford UP, 1998, p. 283.

Advertisements

Name of Company That Owns the Product advertisement. Name of Magazine, Journal or Newspaper Where Advertisement Was Accessed, Date, p. Page number of advertisement.

Louis Vuitton advertisement. Vogue, Dec. 2015, p. 5. 

Class Notes & Presentations

Instructor's Presentation Slides

Instructor's Last Name, First Name. "Title of PowerPoint Presentation." Date of PowerPoint presentation, Title of Course, School within Seneca

College, Seneca College. Microsoft PowerPoint presentation. 

Paulson, Marianne. "HUM 100: Week 5: Rome and Rise of Empire." 31 Mar. 2012, The Development of Western Thought, School of English and

Liberal Studies, Seneca College. Microsoft PowerPoint presentation. 

In-Text Citation Example: (Paulson, slide 5)

Instructor's Handouts/Notes

Instructor's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Handouts/Notes." Name of Course, School within Seneca College, Seneca College. Date notes

were received. Course handout.

 Kurtis, Mark. "Critical Analysis." College English, School of English and Liberal Studies, Seneca College. Received 5 May 2016. Course

handout.

Government Docs

from a website:

Title of Document: Subtitle if Given. Edition if given and is not first edition, Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee, Publication

Date, URL. 

Highlights from the Competition Bureau’s Workshop on Emerging Competition Issues. Competition Bureau of Canada, 4 Mar. 2016,

 www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/vwapj/cb-Workshop-Summary-Report-e.pdf/$FILE/cb-Workshop-Summary-Report-

e.pdf. 

 

Interviews

Last Name of Person Who Was Interviewed, First Name. Description of Interview. Day Month Year of interview. Personal Interview.

Ball, William. Best Practices for the Care of Hospital Patients. 30 Jan. 2016. Telephone Interview.

Myers, Elizabeth. The Dangers of Violence in the Media. 12 Mar. 2016. Personal Interview.

Smith, Paula. "Re: Food and Family." Received by Joseph Tan. 20 May 2016. Email Interview.

Social Media

"Body Image." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 16 June 2016, 7:41 pm, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_image.

Accessed 28 June 2016.

Naish, Darren. "If Bigfoot Were Real." Tetrapod Zoology, Scientific American Blogs, 27 June 2016,

blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/if-bigfoot-were-real/. Accessed 28 June 2016.

Orton, Tyler, and Patrick Blennerhassett. "Lessons From the Brexit." BIV Podcast, Episode 18, Business Vancouver, 28

June 2016, www.biv.com/article/2016/6/biv-podcast-episode-18-lessons-brexit/. Accessed 2 July 2016.

@ReallyVirtual (Sohaib Athar). "Helicopter hovering above Abbottad at 1AM is a rare event." Twitter,  4 Jan. 2013, 3:58

p.m. twitter.com/reallyvirtual/status/64780730286358528?lang=en.

Rick Mercer Report. Spread the Net Challenge Winners 2016. Facebook, 23 Mar. 2016, 9:00 a.m.,

www.facebook.com/rickmercerreport. Accessed 26 June 2016.

Sethi, Ramit. "How to Write a Winning Resume, With Ramit Sethi." YouTube, 23 June 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?

v=_0fjkKCsM1w. Accessed 28 June 2016.

Videos/DVDs

You Tube/Hulu/Vimeo - Last Name, First Name of video creator or Username of Creator. "Title of Video." Title of the Hosting Website, Day Month Year of Publication, URL of video. Accessed Day Month Year video was viewed.

DVD/Film - Title of Movie. Director's Name. Performers Names. Production Company, Year of Release. 

TV Episode - "Title of Episode." Title of TV Series. Contributors Name(s), Season, Episode,  Production Company, Year of Release. 

Examples:

"The One Where Chandler Can't Cry." Friends, created by Marta Kauffman, performance by Matthew Perry, season 6, episode 14, Warner

Brothers, 2004. 

Sethi, Ramit. "How to Write a Winning Resume, With Ramit Sethi." YouTube, 23 June 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0fjkKCsM1w.

Accessed 28 June 2016.

The Usual Suspects. Directed by Bryan Singer. Performances by Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Chazz Palminteri, Stephen Baldwin, and Benicio

Del Toro. Polygram, 1995. 

Questions?

Contact Sarah Hill, Information Services Librarian at libref@lakelandcollege.edu or 217-234-5440