MLA Formatting and Style Guide

What is referencing?

          Referencing, or citing, is the practice of acknowledging sources of information and ideas that you have used in an assignment (e.g. an essay or report). This means that whenever you write an assignment that requires you to find and use information from other sources, you are expected to refer to these sources in your writing. This is a university expectation linked to Academic Integrity. Referencing is also part of the process of being ‘information literate’. This means that you will be able to ‘locate, evaluate, manage and use information in a range of contexts’ – in other words, be ‘information literate’.

Why reference?

           Using numerous references in an assignment demonstrates wide reading and your breadth of knowledge of a topic and strengthens your academic argument by providing evidence to support your point of view. These references are necessary so anyone reading your work knows the source of your information and can consult these sources if they choose to do so.  Referencing information from a variety of resources clearly identifies and distinguishes between information which comes from another source and information which is your own. By using references appropriately, you will avoid plagiarism, which is wrongfully claiming someone else’s words or ideas as your own

Referencing principles:

Three key principles of referencing are:

1.  A source of information must be referred to every time you use information from another source in your assignment. Use a reference if you paraphrase, summaries, quote or copy.

        2.  Each reference must be

        - indicated in the text of your assignment (in brackets)

          AND

      - listed in the reference list at the end of the assignment. This listing has full details so that the reader can locate and consult the  reference if required. 

       3.The in-text reference needs enough information so that the reader can find the source in the reference list at the end of the assignment.

MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources.

        MLA style specifies guidelines for formatting manuscripts and using the English language in writing. MLA style also provides writers with a system for referencing their sources through parenthetical citation in their essays and Works Cited pages.

Writers who properly use MLA also build their credibility by demonstrating accountability to their source material. Most importantly, the use of MLA style can protect writers from accusations of plagiarism, which is the purposeful or accidental unaccredited use of source material by other writers.

Citation for Print Resources 

Books 

Book by One Author

Author’s last name, first name. Book title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.

Book by Two or Three Authors

First author's last name, first name, and second author's first name, last name. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.

Book by Three or More Authors

First author's last name, first name, et al. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.

(Note: et al. means "and others".)

Unsigned Article in a Reference Book or Encyclopedia or Dictionary

"Article Title." Book Title. Edition. Year published 

 Article in a Reference Book or Encyclopedia

Author’s last name, first name. "Article Title." Book Title. Year published ed.

Book with an Editor and No Author

Last name, first name, ed. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.

Print Magazine or Newspaper Article

Author’s last name, first name. "Article Name." Magazine or Newspaper Name. Date Month Year, pages.

Interview

Last name of person interviewed, first name. Personal interview or Telephone interview or E-mail interview. Date.

Music cds

Last name of artist, first name. "Name of song." Name of composer. Name of CD. Manufacturer. Date of issue.

Video / Film

Title, underlined. Director's name. Distributor, year.

Paintings, Sculpture or Photograph

To cite a painting or sculpture, state the artist's name first. Underline the title. Name the institution that houses the work (such as a museum) or who owns it and follow the name by a comma and the city. If you use a photograph of a painting or sculpture, also include the complete publication information for the source in which the photograph appears, including the page, slide, figure, or plate number, whichever is relevant. If you wish to indicate when a work of art was created, add the date immediately after the title. Cite a photograph in a museum or collection as you would a painting or sculpture. 

Artist's last name, first name. Title of artwork. Museum or owner, city 

Some Tips on Handling Electronic Sources

It is always a good idea to maintain personal copies of electronic information, when possible. It is good practice to print or save Web pages or, better, using a program like Adobe Acrobat, to keep your own copies for future reference. Most Web browsers will include URL/electronic address information when you print, which makes later reference easy. Also learn to use the Bookmark function in your Web browser.

Basic Style for Citations of Electronic Sources

Here are some common features you should try and find before citing electronic sources in MLA style. Always include as much information as is available/applicable:

1)  Author and/or editor names

2)  Name of the database, or title of project, book, article

3)  Any version numbers available

4)  Date of version, revision, or posting

5)  Publisher information

6)  Date you accessed the material

7)  Electronic address, printed between carets ([<, >]).

Internet Text Resources

Author’s last name, first name. "Title of Page Section." Title of Complete Site. Accessed date month year <URL>.

Online newspaper and Magazines

Author’s last name, first name. "Article Title." Name of newspaper. Edition, section: date of publication, page. Accessed date month year <URL>.

Online Encyclopedia

Author's last name, first name. "Article Name." Name of encyclopedia. Edition. Accessed date month year <URL>.

E book

Author Last Name, First Name . Book Title. Print Publisher Information, Publication Date (if available). Website/Database Name. Website/Database Publisher. Day Month Year of Access. 

How to write a Bibliography

A Bibliography or bibliographies provide an alphabetical list of sources that may have been used in order to create a piece of work. Bibliographies are often a part of research papers and academic articles, and in these cases, the bibliography lists all the works referred to in that paper or article. Now these sources may appear in various forms, for e.g. Books,magazines,newspapers, CD ROMs, Internet, interviews, etc. In fact it’s said that all biographies begin with the research which include everything from hunting in a library to searching on the web.

Bibliographies actually helps us to acknowledge our sources, to ensure the accuracy of the information found in the written work and last but not the least, to give the readers information so as to identify and consult the sources. If the bibliography is not included one may be accused of plagiarism (which is stealing another person’s ideas or writing).Start a preliminary, or draft, bibliography by listing on a separate sheet of paper all your sources. Note down the full title, author, and place of publication, publisher, and date of publication for each source.

When assembling a final bibliography, list your sources (text, articles… and so on) in alphabetical order by authors’ last names. Sources that don’t have authors (encyclopedias, movies) should be alphabetized by title 

When assembling a final bibliography, list your sources (text, articles… and so on) in alphabetical order by authors’ last names. Sources that don’t have authors (encyclopedias, movies) should be alphabetized by title 

Authors first name, last name. Title of the book .place of   publication: publisher, year of publication.

References

Navrachana International School - Library AI Citation Guide

Using Artificial Intelligence Tools Responsibly in MLA Style.

This guide helps you correctly cite AI tools (like ChatGPT, Bing AI, or Gemini) when used in school assignments, projects, or research papers following the MLA format

Use Work Generated by Artificial Intelligence Carefully and Transparently.

 When Should You Cite AI?

✅ Cite it when:

·         - You include information, ideas, or responses from AI tools (quoted or paraphrased).

·         - The AI helped you write or understand part of your assignment.

❌   No need to cite when:

·         - You only used AI for checking grammar, spelling, or brainstorming small ideas.

·         - No AI-generated text or ideas were used in your work.

Cite the specific AI-generated content you use or take ideas from (text, images, videos, audio, code, etc.). Including both in-text citations and full citations in your Works Cited.

Acknowledge All Uses of the Tool and Cite Any Quote or Paraphrase If you use an AI tool, you should explain how you used the tool—to provide information, summarize text, rewrite text, translate, define words, explain ideas, create an image, etc.—and provide your prompt.

You can provide this information either in the body of your paper or the references and citations.

MLA recommends that you provide a citation when you paraphrase, quote, or incorporate into your own work any content (text, image, data, or anything else) that was created by an AI tool. You will need a brief in-text citation in the body of your paper and a complete citation in the Works Cited section.

General Format for Works Cited in an MLA citation for AI-generated content, there is no author, since AI tools cannot be accountable as authors. Instead, start the citation with a brief description of what the AI tool generated.

Brief description of work done by AI Tool. Name of AI Tool, Version if known, Name of Company, date the content was generated, URL link address to general site of AI tool or to specific content if available.

 Example:

If you typed Give me step-by-step instructions on how to flush an electric water heater into ChatGPT and then used the response as a source of information, you need to acknowledge, cite in your work.

Instructions for flushing a water heater. ChatGPT, OpenAI, 18 Dec. 2023, https://chatgpt.com/share/1483a831-2726-4d47-91d6-924a7b8a1c72

About the version: Different AI tools may identify versions differently. Look for a version date (e.g., March 14 version), a version name, or a version number (e.g., Version 3.3). Many AI tools do not show version dates. If there is no version information provided, skip this part of the citation.

A. Works Cited Entry

Format: “Describe the Prompt You Asked.” ChatGPT, OpenAI, Date of Response, URL (optional).

Example 1: “Explain the causes of World War I.” ChatGPT, OpenAI, 9 July 2025, chat.openai.com.

Example 2: “Summarize Shakespeare’s Macbeth.” ChatGPT, OpenAI, 10 July 2025.

B. In-Text Citation

General Format for In-Text Citations When you summarize, take ideas from, or quote directly from AI-generated content, you need to provide an in-text citation in your work. The purpose of in-text citations is to point your reader to the corresponding full citation in your Works Cited list. You only need to include enough information in the intext citation for your reader can easily identify which source in the Works Cited you are referring to. An in-text citation inside parentheses uses an abbreviated portion of the first element of the full citation that appears in the Works Cited page. When that first element is a title (or, in this case, a description of work done by an AI tool or an exact prompt given to an AI tool), you shorten the title to the first noun or noun phrase. Place the shortened title, description, or prompt in parentheses at the end of the sentence. If the words appear within quotation marks in the Works Cited citation, put them in quotation marks inside the parentheses

Use a general parenthetical citation: (ChatGPT)

Or integrate in your sentence: for example

According to ChatGPT, French warfare changed the pace of World War I battles.

Citing AI-Generated Creative Works with Titles

 If you use the AI tool to generate a creative text work that has a title, like a poem or story, include the title of the work in quotation marks followed by a short description of the work. Example:

 “Rituals of Cleansing” poem in the style of E. E. Cummings about how to flush a water heater. ChatGPT, OpenAI, 2 Jan. 2024, https://chatgpt.com/share/9dab9425-e1a5-4497-958b-ce7e2161b3a2

Citing AI-Generated Images

If you want to include an AI-generated image in your paper, include it as a numbered figure—abbreviated Fig.—with a caption. Include enough information in the caption so that the reader understands the image and can easily find the full citation in the Works Cited list. For example, MLA recommends you include the prompt in quotation marks followed by the word prompt, the AI tool, version (if known), and date generated in the caption.

Fig. 1. “A watercolor painting of Batman reading a book in a library” prompt, DALL-E, version 2, 21 Aug. 2023. https://labs.openai.com/s/D4u19kmQHkzTIucl9C1fW6Gf

AI tools do not think or know like humans. Always:

·         - Check facts from reliable sources.

·         - Do not submit AI-generated content as your own work without proper acknowledgment.

 References: