when referencing an article do you underline

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Knowing When To Underline Or Italicize: Your Go-To Guide

Knowing when to underline or italicize can be confusing. But it doesn’t have to be! In this article, we’ll lay out all the basics, plus a few common difficulties that confuse many writers, so you’ll be an expert in no time.

At the end of the article, you’ll get the chance to practice your hand at some sample sentences, so you’ll be sure that you know the ins and outs of using italics and underlines.

Italics Vs Underline: Clarifying The Confusion

In the past (before computers and MLA handbooks), italics and underlines were used to emphasize certain words or titles within the text. It let the reader know what was important, or what was separate from the rest of the sentence. They were both used interchangeably, as long as they were consistent.

Now, with the ability to change formatting with the click of a button, italics are generally used to indicate titles, and only sometimes for emphasis. Meanwhile, underlining is mostly reserved to replace italics in handwritten papers. Manuals and guidebooks, such as the MLA handbook, are now widely used in large institutions or according to the country’s standards, so that specific writing conventions, grammar rules, and formatting styles have become uniform.

With that said, the general rule is that italics are used for titles of books, movies, TV and radio shows, magazines, works of art, and long poems. As mentioned before, underlining is a substitute for italics when writing titles by hand.

Proper formatting in an essay can be confusing for many students: https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-blue-blazer-holding-white-paper-3727468/

Titles of long works.

Titles that should be italicized are longer works. These include titles of books, movies, TV and radio shows, journals and magazines, and long poems. In the next section, we’ll see how these works differ from titles of shorter works which are put in quotations instead.

• The novel Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte, was published in 1847 under the pen name of Currer Bell.
• The movie Home Alone , released in 1990, made a worldwide total of $476,684,675 in box office revenue.

Titles Of Smaller Works

The titles of smaller works are put in “quotations” in order to differentiate them from longer works. These smaller works include titles of chapters, short stories, TV or radio show episodes, articles, and short poems.

In the examples below, note how you can recognize the difference between the shorter works and larger works just by seeing how they are emphasized in the sentence. This makes it impossible to confuse the title of a chapter with the book that it belongs to, or the episode from its TV show.

• The chapter entitled “The Castaway” in Moby Dick describes the near-death experience of a character named Pip.
• Edgar Allen Poe’s short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” was originally published in a Burton’s Gentleman’s Magazine.
• The pilot episode of Friends , which was released on September 22, 1994, is called “The One Where Monica Gets A Roommate.”

Punctuation In Titles: Common Confusions

Question marks.

Confusion can come up when a title includes a question mark or an exclamation mark in the title itself. For example, the book Who Has Seen the Wind? includes a question mark in it.

The way to deal with these titles is to italicize the question mark as well, just as it is above. By doing so, you can differentiate this title from an actual question, such as writing: Have you read Gone With the Wind ?

The same idea applies to exclamation marks — for example, the movie Mamma Mia! , which includes an exclamation mark in the title. Note the italicization, and the difference between writing Mamma Mia! , the movie, and writing: I can’t believe that you never watched The Parent Trap !

Commas and periods

The confusion of commas and periods when it comes to quotations is a debate between different handbooks and countries. According to the MLA (Modern Language Association) handbook, commas and periods are placed inside of quotation marks.

• “The Seinfeld Chronicles , ” the first episode of Seinfeld , had 15.4 million viewers in America.
• Among the short stories of James Joyce included in the collection Dubliners are “Araby , ” “The Sisters , ” and “The Encounter.”

Solidify your new skills by completing practice sentences: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-wearing-black-and-white-stripe-shirt-looking-at-white-printer-papers-on-the-wall-212286/

Let’s practice.

Try your hand at your new skills! Below are five sentences without any italics or quotations. Italicize the longer works and put the shorter works in quotations. If you get stuck, check back in the article, and you’ll be an expert in no time. Be sure to pay attention to tricky commas, periods, and question marks.

• The Lazy Controller, chapter two of Thinking Fast and Slow, talks about multitasking and its effect on thinking.
• The Yellow Wallpaper, a short story by Catherine Perkins Gilman, was originally published in The New England Magazine in January 1892.
• John Lennon’s album Imagine included favorites such as Gimme Some Truth, How Do You Sleep?, and, of course, Imagine.
• The premiere episode of Family Matters is called The Mama Who Came To Dinner, and relays the drama of Carl’s mother coming to live with him.
• The short story Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway was first published in a magazine called Transition, and was only later published in his book Men Without Women.

Why Is Proper Indentation Important?

College essays  .

No matter what you study in college, most students write a lot of essays during their school years. While some degrees may put more of an emphasis on writing proper essays , most teachers and professors will expect a certain level of basic grammar and formatting knowledge. Before you even step foot into college, you’ll most likely be expected to write an application essay . It’s important to put your best foot forward, and small formatting rules can go a long way in making a good first impression.

Landing your dream job  

In addition to college essays, prospective employers and job positions will require and look for basic (or advanced, depending on the position) writing skills. Whether you think your dream job requires writing skills or not, writing is a part of everyday life and work, from emails and text messages, to presentations and reports. Having good writing skills will help you make a good first impression, land your dream job, and do your best work.

Proper writing is an important skill for any job: https://www.pexels.com/photo/writing-notes-idea-class-7103/

Having a successful career.

Though different students earn a degree for different reasons, many are hoping to work toward a successful career. In order to do this, the right preparation is key. Preparation may be earning a degree, gaining specific skills, or having the right guidance along the way.

University of the People prepares our students for successful careers by providing program advising , mentorship , and an emphasis on career development . We know that these extra details, much like formatting in an essay, make a big difference for the future success of our students. University of the People is a tuition-free online university that offers degree programs in business administration, computer science, health science, and education.

Wrapping Up

Now you know when to underline or italicize, and much more. To wrap up, italics should be used for the titles of longer works such as movies, books, and TV shows, and underlining for handwritten papers.

In addition, we hope you’ve learned the more tricky rules such as question marks and commas, and that you’ve given some thought to the importance of writing for your future education and success.

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Do You Italicize Article Titles? (Ultimate Citation Guide)

Do you italicize article titles? Put them in quotes? Underline them? If you’ve ever struggled with how to format titles, this blog post is for you.

Do you italicize article titles?

No, you do not italicize article titles. You place article titles in double quotation marks. This formatting rule applies to article titles in MLA, APA, Chicago Style, scholarly journals, magazines, newspapers, online, and most reference sections.

In this article, we’ll look at 11 specific scenarios so that we cover all the bases and answer all of your questions (Hint: only one scenario has an exception).

Do You Italicize Article Titles: Summary of Answers

I thought you might appreciate a summary table right here at the beginning.

I wanted to keep the table super simple so I only included two categories—type of content and whether or not you italicize it.

Check it out below:

You might consider bookmarking this article in your favorite internet browser so that you can come back to this information anytime you want for a quick refresher.

Do Article Titles Get Italicized? (The One Exception)

You do not italicize article titles. You almost always place double quotation marks around article titles.

The only time you detour from quotation marks is when you write titles in an APA-style reference list. In that case, you write the title without any special formatting (italics, quotation marks, or underlining).

That’s the simple, direct answer.

Here are two simple examples of a properly formatted article title:

Wrong: Is Superman a Pisces

Right: “Is Superman a Pisces?”

Now, let’s look at other specific questions you might ask yourself when writing.

Do You Italicize Article Titles in MLA?

No, you do not italicize the titles of articles in MLA. You place the article title in quotes.

Here are two examples:

Wrong: 5 Signs He’s Too Tall For You

Right: “5 Signs He’s Too Tall For You”

Here’s an example of a complete MLA citation from a real article:

Kokoski, Christopher. “How To Become a Fortune Cookie Writer.” Christopher Kokoski, 16 Apr. 2021, www.writingbeginner.com/how-to-become-a-fortune-cookie-writer.

MLA , by the way, stands for Modern Language Association. The MLA Handbook is basically a stylebook for how to write information, format documents, and cite sources.

Do You Italicize Article Titles in APA?

You do not italicize article titles in APA. You place double quotation marks around the titles of articles.

Wrong: Will Ferrell Loves Baby Jesus

Right: “Will Ferrell Loves Baby Jesus”

APA stands for the American Psychological Association . APA is another style of writing, formatting, and citing information.

Do You Italicize Article Titles in APA References?

No, you do not italicize article titles in APA references or citation lists. You also don’t need to underline the title or put the title in quotes. You simply write the article title without any special formatting.

I understand the confusion when it comes to referencing sources in a list of citations at the end of a paper or article. The rule on titles is still “No, don’t italicize article titles,” but that doesn’t tell you WHAT to do.

The answer is that you don’t need to do anything at all. You simply list the title. Note that this is the ONLY exception to the answer in the answer box image at the beginning of this post.

Still, you don’t italicize the article title.

Wrong: Kokoski, C. (2021, April 16). How To Become a Fortune Cookie Writer . Christopher Kokoski. https://www.writingbeginner.com/how-to-become-a-fortune-cookie-writer/

Right: Kokoski, C. (2021, April 16). How To Become a Fortune Cookie Writer . Christopher Kokoski. https://www.writingbeginner.com/how-to-become-a-fortune-cookie-writer/

Keep in mind that style handbooks, like APA, tend to change over time. It’s a good idea to always check with the latest version of the APA style guide.

Do Journal Article Titles Get Italicized?

You do not italicize journal articles. You place double quotation marks around the title of journal articles in MLA and do not format the title of the journal articles at all in APA.

The confusion with scholarly journals is that you italicize the name of the journal, but you place quotes around the title of the articles in the journal. There is also a difference between the rules for MLA and APA-style reference lists.

However, in all cases, you do not italicize the title of journal articles.

Here are examples from MLA:

Wrong: Shamblen, Stephen & Kokoski, Christopher & Collins, David & Strader, Ted & Mckiernan, Patrick. (2017). Implementing Creating Lasting Family Connections with reentry fathers: A partial replication during a period of policy change . Journal of Offender Rehabilitation. 56. 1-13. 10.1080/10509674.2017.1327917.

Right: Shamblen, Stephen & Kokoski, Christopher & Collins, David & Strader, Ted & Mckiernan, Patrick. (2017). “Implementing Creating Lasting Family Connections with reentry fathers: A partial replication during a period of policy change.” Journal of Offender Rehabilitation. 56. 1-13. 10.1080/10509674.2017.1327917.

Do You Italicize Article Titles in Chicago Style?

What about Chicago Style? This is a good question since some of the “rules” are different between the style guides. However, the rule for italicizing article titles is the same.

You do not italicize article titles in Chicago Style. You place the title of the article in quotation marks.

Here are a few examples of Chicago Style :

Wrong: His article, Writing Love Squares: 13 Things You Need To Know , made some fascinating points!

Right: His article, “Writing Love Squares: 13 Things You Need To Know,” made some fascinating points!

Do Newspaper Article Titles Get Italicized?

You do not italicize the title of articles in newspapers. You place the title in double quotation marks. However, you do italicize the name of the newspaper.

Here are examples:

Wrong: Her article, Salvation by Dessert , appeared in The New York Times .

Right: Her article, “Salvation by Dessert,” appeared in The New York Times .

Note that, in these examples, the title of the specific article is in quotes but the title of the newspaper is italicized.

Should Any Article Titles Be Italicized?

You never italicize any entire article titles. You might, however, italicize unfamiliar foreign words or the titles of books you mention within an article title. But you do not italicize the entire article title under any circumstance.

I know this is somewhat of a repeat of the first question in the article, but sometimes I find it helpful to ask (and answer) the silly questions that summarize the information in a blog post.

Hopefully, this slight repeat helps you as it might help others.

For the sake of clarity, here are more examples of how to format article titles:

Wrong: The Problem With Smurfette

Right: “The Problem With Smurfette”

Since we’re about to look at a few rare scenarios you might face, here is a short video from Khan Academy to really nail down how to use quotation marks in titles:

Do You Italicize Foreign Words in Article Titles?

What about foreign words within the title of your article?

The Chicago Manual of Style says:

Italicize individual foreign words or short phrases that readers might not understand. Therefore, you should italicize only the unfamiliar foreign word or phrase within the title. Place quotation marks around the complete title of the article.

How do you know if a foreign word will confuse readers?

You check the English dictionary. If a foreign word or short phrase appears in the English dictionary, you probably don’t need to italicize it. If the word or phrase doesn’t appear in the English dictionary, then you can safely italicize it.

Just remember to place double quotation marks around the entire article title.

Wrong: The Best Teachers Embrace Juegos in the Classroom

Right: “The Best Teachers Embrace Juegos in the Classroom”

Do You Italicize the Title of Books in Your Article Title?

This is another very special circumstance.

You do not italicize article titles. If you name a book in the title of your article, you italicize only the name of the book. The entire article title is placed in quotation marks.

Here is an example:

Wrong: How Wicker Hollow Changed the Way I View Thriller Fiction

Right: “How Wicker Hollow Changed the Way I View Thriller Fiction”

Note: Wicker Hollow is the title of a book (in this case, it’s a book I wrote).

Do You Italicize the Title of Other Articles in Your Article Title?

This is a somewhat confusing question to ask, but I’ll try to clarify.

Sometimes you include the title of another article inside your article title. For example, imagine that you want to write an article about another, separate article.

When you reference another article in your article title, you italicize only the other, referenced article. However, the overall title of your article is not italicized. Rather, you place your article title in quotes.

Let’s look at a concrete example. Perhaps you read an article titled, “Fan Fiction 101,” and want to write about it. You decide to write your own article that references, “Fan Fiction 101”.

Here is the wrong and right way to format your article title:

Wrong: “My Take on the ‘Fan Fiction 101’ Viral Trend”

Right: “My Take on the Fan Fiction 101 Viral Trend”

Automatic Citation Generator

By the way, even though we already answered the question “Do you italicize article titles?”, I thought you might like a quick shortcut I use for citing sources.

My favorite automatic citation generator is made by Scribbr . It’s not perfect, but it usually works like a charm when I need a quick, accurate citation.

Best of all, it is free and generates:

• MLA citations
• APA citations
• Chicago Style citations

Final Thoughts: Do You Italicize Article Titles?

Thank you for reading this article. I hope you found all the answers you wanted (and then some).

If you enjoyed this post, you might also like these other articles:

• Why Do Writers Hate Adverbs (The Final Answer)
• Is Social Media Good or Bad For Writers? (The Final Answer)
• My Most Recommended Tools for Writers

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Thursday, February 23: The Clark Library is closed today.

APA Style (7th Edition) Citation Guide: Journal Articles

• Introduction
• Journal Articles
• Magazine/Newspaper Articles
• Books & Ebooks
• Government & Legal Documents
• Biblical Sources
• Secondary Sources
• Films/Videos/TV Shows
• How to Cite: Other
• Additional Help

Table of Contents

Journal article from library database with doi - one author, journal article from library database with doi - multiple authors, journal article from a website - one author.

Journal Article- No DOI

Note: All citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference List.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

This Microsoft support page contains instructions about how to format a hanging indent in a paper.

• APA 7th. ed. Journal Article Reference Checklist

If an item has no author, start the citation with the article title.

When an article has one to twenty authors, all authors' names are cited in the References List entry. When an article has twenty-one or more authors list the first nineteen authors followed by three spaced ellipse points (. . .) , and then the last author's name. Rules are different for in-text citations; please see the examples provided.

Cite author names in the order in which they appear on the source, not in alphabetical order (the first author is usually the person who contributed the most work to the publication).

Italicize titles of journals, magazines and newspapers. Do not italicize or use quotation marks for the titles of articles.

Capitalize only the first letter of the first word of the article title. If there is a colon in the article title, also capitalize the first letter of the first word after the colon.

If an item has no date, use the short form n.d. where you would normally put the date.

Volume and Issue Numbers

Italicize volume numbers but not issue numbers.

Retrieval Dates

Most articles will not need these in the citation. Only use them for online articles from places where content may change often, like a free website or a wiki.

Page Numbers

If an article doesn't appear on continuous pages, list all the page numbers the article is on, separated by commas. For example (4, 6, 12-14)

Library Database

Do not include the name of a database for works obtained from most academic research databases (e.g. APA PsycInfo, CINAHL) because works in these resources are widely available. Exceptions are Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, ERIC, ProQuest Dissertations, and UpToDate.

Include the DOI (formatted as a URL: https://doi.org/...) if it is available. If you do not have a DOI, include a URL if the full text of the article is available online (not as part of a library database). If the full text is from a library database, do not include a DOI, URL, or database name.

In the Body of a Paper

Books, Journals, Reports, Webpages, etc.: When you refer to titles of a “stand-alone work,” as the APA calls them on their APA Style website, such as books, journals, reports, and webpages, you should italicize them. Capitalize words as you would for an article title in a reference, e.g., In the book Crying in H Mart: A memoir , author Michelle Zauner (2021) describes her biracial origin and its impact on her identity.

Article or Chapter: When you refer to the title of a part of a work, such as an article or a chapter, put quotation marks around the title and capitalize it as you would for a journal title in a reference, e.g., In the chapter “Where’s the Wine,” Zauner (2021) describes how she decided to become a musician.

The APA Sample Paper below has more information about formatting your paper.

• APA 7th ed. Sample Paper

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any. Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. https://doi.org/doi number

Smith, K. F. (2022). The public and private dialogue about the American family on television: A second look. Journal of Media Communication, 50 (4), 79-110. https://doi.org/10.1152/j.1460-2466.2000.tb02864.x

Note: The DOI number is formatted as a URL: https://doi.org/10.1152/j.1460-2466.2000.tb02864.xIf. 

In-Text Paraphrase:

(Author's Last Name, Year)

Example: (Smith, 2000)

In-Text Quote:

(Author's Last Name, Year, p. Page Number)

Example: (Smith, 2000, p. 80)

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given., & Last Name of Second Author, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any. Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. https://doi.org/doi number

Note: Separate the authors' names by putting a comma between them. For the final author listed add an ampersand (&) after the comma and before the final author's last name.

Note: In the reference list invert all authors' names; give last names and initials for only up to and including 20 authors. When a source has 21 or more authors, include the first 19 authors’ names, then three ellipses (…), and add the last author’s name. Don't include an ampersand (&) between the ellipsis and final author.

Note : For works with three or more authors, the first in-text citation is shortened to include the first author's surname followed by "et al."

Reference List Examples

Two to 20 Authors

Case, T. A., Daristotle, Y. A., Hayek, S. L., Smith, R. R., & Raash, L. I. (2011). College students' social networking experiences on Facebook. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 3 (2), 227-238. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2008.12.010

21 or more authors

Kalnay, E., Kanamitsu, M., Kistler, R., Collins, W., Deaven, D., Gandin, L., Iredell, M., Saha, J., Mo, K. C., Ropelewski, C., Wang, J., Leetma, A., . . . Joseph, D. (1996). The NCEP/NCAR 40-year reanalysis project. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society , 77 (3), 437-471. https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477(1996)077<0437:TNYRP>2.0.CO;2

In-Text Citations

Two Authors/Editors

(Case & Daristotle, 2011)

Direct Quote: (Case & Daristotle, 2011, p. 57)

Three or more Authors/Editors

(Case et al., 2011)

Direct Quote: (Case et al., 2011, p. 57)

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any.  Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number if given). URL

Flachs, A. (2010). Food for thought: The social impact of community gardens in the Greater Cleveland Area.  Electronic Green Journal, 1 (30). http://escholarship.org/uc/item/6bh7j4z4

Example: (Flachs, 2010)

Example: (Flachs, 2010, Conclusion section, para. 3)

Note: In this example there were no visible page numbers or paragraph numbers, in this case you can cite the section heading and the number of the paragraph in that section to identify where your quote came from. If there are no page or paragraph numbers and no marked section, leave this information out.

Journal Article - No DOI

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any.  Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. URL [if article is available online, not as part of a library database]

Full-Text Available Online (Not as Part of a Library Database):

Steinberg, M. P., & Lacoe, J. (2017). What do we know about school discipline reform? Assessing the alternatives to suspensions and expulsions.  Education Next, 17 (1), 44–52.  https://www.educationnext.org/what-do-we-know-about-school-discipline-reform-suspensions-expulsions/

Example: (Steinberg & Lacoe, 2017)

(Author's Last Name, Year, p. Page number)

Example: (Steinberg & Lacoe, 2017, p. 47)

Full-Text Available in Library Database:

Jungers, W. L. (2010). Biomechanics: Barefoot running strikes back.  Nature, 463 (2), 433-434.

Example: (Jungers, 2010)

Example: (Jungers, 2010, p. 433)

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• Referencing

A Quick Guide to Harvard Referencing | Citation Examples

Published on 14 February 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on 15 September 2023.

Referencing is an important part of academic writing. It tells your readers what sources you’ve used and how to find them.

Harvard is the most common referencing style used in UK universities. In Harvard style, the author and year are cited in-text, and full details of the source are given in a reference list .

Harvard Reference Generator

Table of contents

Harvard in-text citation, creating a harvard reference list, harvard referencing examples, referencing sources with no author or date, frequently asked questions about harvard referencing.

A Harvard in-text citation appears in brackets beside any quotation or paraphrase of a source. It gives the last name of the author(s) and the year of publication, as well as a page number or range locating the passage referenced, if applicable:

Note that ‘p.’ is used for a single page, ‘pp.’ for multiple pages (e.g. ‘pp. 1–5’).

An in-text citation usually appears immediately after the quotation or paraphrase in question. It may also appear at the end of the relevant sentence, as long as it’s clear what it refers to.

When your sentence already mentions the name of the author, it should not be repeated in the citation:

Sources with multiple authors

When you cite a source with up to three authors, cite all authors’ names. For four or more authors, list only the first name, followed by ‘ et al. ’:

Sources with no page numbers

Some sources, such as websites , often don’t have page numbers. If the source is a short text, you can simply leave out the page number. With longer sources, you can use an alternate locator such as a subheading or paragraph number if you need to specify where to find the quote:

Multiple citations at the same point

When you need multiple citations to appear at the same point in your text – for example, when you refer to several sources with one phrase – you can present them in the same set of brackets, separated by semicolons. List them in order of publication date:

Multiple sources with the same author and date

If you cite multiple sources by the same author which were published in the same year, it’s important to distinguish between them in your citations. To do this, insert an ‘a’ after the year in the first one you reference, a ‘b’ in the second, and so on:

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

A bibliography or reference list appears at the end of your text. It lists all your sources in alphabetical order by the author’s last name, giving complete information so that the reader can look them up if necessary.

The reference entry starts with the author’s last name followed by initial(s). Only the first word of the title is capitalised (as well as any proper nouns).

Sources with multiple authors in the reference list

As with in-text citations, up to three authors should be listed; when there are four or more, list only the first author followed by ‘ et al. ’:

Reference list entries vary according to source type, since different information is relevant for different sources. Formats and examples for the most commonly used source types are given below.

• Entire book
• Book chapter
• Translated book
• Edition of a book

Journal articles

• Print journal
• Online-only journal with DOI
• Online-only journal with no DOI
• General web page
• Online article or blog
• Social media post

Sometimes you won’t have all the information you need for a reference. This section covers what to do when a source lacks a publication date or named author.

No publication date

When a source doesn’t have a clear publication date – for example, a constantly updated reference source like Wikipedia or an obscure historical document which can’t be accurately dated – you can replace it with the words ‘no date’:

Note that when you do this with an online source, you should still include an access date, as in the example.

When a source lacks a clearly identified author, there’s often an appropriate corporate source – the organisation responsible for the source – whom you can credit as author instead, as in the Google and Wikipedia examples above.

When that’s not the case, you can just replace it with the title of the source in both the in-text citation and the reference list:

Harvard referencing uses an author–date system. Sources are cited by the author’s last name and the publication year in brackets. Each Harvard in-text citation corresponds to an entry in the alphabetised reference list at the end of the paper.

Vancouver referencing uses a numerical system. Sources are cited by a number in parentheses or superscript. Each number corresponds to a full reference at the end of the paper.

A Harvard in-text citation should appear in brackets every time you quote, paraphrase, or refer to information from a source.

The citation can appear immediately after the quotation or paraphrase, or at the end of the sentence. If you’re quoting, place the citation outside of the quotation marks but before any other punctuation like a comma or full stop.

In Harvard referencing, up to three author names are included in an in-text citation or reference list entry. When there are four or more authors, include only the first, followed by ‘ et al. ’

Though the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, there is a difference in meaning:

• A reference list only includes sources cited in the text – every entry corresponds to an in-text citation .
• A bibliography also includes other sources which were consulted during the research but not cited.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2023, September 15). A Quick Guide to Harvard Referencing | Citation Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 21 November 2023, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/referencing/harvard-style/

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How to Cite a Journal Article | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

Published on March 9, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on August 23, 2022.

To cite an article from an academic journal, you need an in-text citation and a corresponding reference listing the name(s) of the author(s), the publication date, the article title and journal name, the volume and issue numbers, the page range, and the URL or DOI .

Different citation styles present this information differently. The main citation styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago style .

You can use the interactive example generator to explore the format for APA and MLA journal article citations.

Table of contents

Citing an article in apa style, citing an article in mla style, citing an article in chicago style, frequently asked questions about citations.

In an APA Style journal article reference , the article title is in plain text and sentence case, while the journal name appears in italics, in title case.

The in-text citation lists up to two authors; for three or more, use “ et al. ”

When citing a journal article in print or from a database, don’t include a URL. You can still include the DOI if available.

You can also cite a journal article using our free APA Citation Generator . Search by title or DOI to automatically generate a correct citation.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Scribbr citation checker new.

The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

• Missing commas and periods
• Incorrect usage of “et al.”
• Ampersands (&) in narrative citations
• Missing reference entries

In an MLA Works Cited entry for a journal article , the article title appears in quotation marks, the name of the journal in italics—both in title case.

List up to two authors in both the in-text citation and the Works Cited entry. For three or more, use “et al.”

A DOI is always included when available; a URL appears if no DOI is available but the article was accessed online . If you accessed the article in print and no DOI is available, you can omit this part.

You can also use our free MLA Citation Generator to create your journal article citations.

Generate accurate MLA citations with Scribbr

In Chicago notes and bibliography style, you include a bibliography entry for each source, and cite them in the text using footnotes .

A bibliography entry for a journal article lists the title of the article in quotation marks and the journal name in italics—both in title case. List up to 10 authors in full; use “et al.” for 11 or more.

In the footnote, use “et al.” for four or more authors.

A DOI or URL (preferably a DOI) is included for articles consulted online; for articles consulted in print, omit this part.

Chicago also offers an alternative author-date style of citation. Examples of how to cite journal articles in this style can be found here .

The elements included in journal article citations across APA , MLA , and Chicago style are the name(s) of the author(s), the title of the article, the year of publication, the name of the journal, the volume and issue numbers, the page range of the article, and, when accessed online, the DOI or URL.

In MLA and Chicago style, you also include the specific month or season of publication alongside the year, when this information is available.

The DOI is usually clearly visible when you open a journal article on an academic database. It is often listed near the publication date, and includes “doi.org” or “DOI:”. If the database has a “cite this article” button, this should also produce a citation with the DOI included.

If you can’t find the DOI, you can search on Crossref using information like the author, the article title, and the journal name.

The abbreviation “ et al. ” (Latin for “and others”) is used to shorten citations of sources with multiple authors.

“Et al.” is used in APA in-text citations of sources with 3+ authors, e.g. (Smith et al., 2019). It is not used in APA reference entries .

Use “et al.” for 3+ authors in MLA in-text citations and Works Cited entries.

Use “et al.” for 4+ authors in a Chicago in-text citation , and for 10+ authors in a Chicago bibliography entry.

Check if your university or course guidelines specify which citation style to use. If the choice is left up to you, consider which style is most commonly used in your field.

• APA Style is the most popular citation style, widely used in the social and behavioral sciences.
• MLA style is the second most popular, used mainly in the humanities.
• Chicago notes and bibliography style is also popular in the humanities, especially history.
• Chicago author-date style tends to be used in the sciences.

Other more specialized styles exist for certain fields, such as Bluebook and OSCOLA for law.

The most important thing is to choose one style and use it consistently throughout your text.

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Caulfield, J. (2022, August 23). How to Cite a Journal Article | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved November 21, 2023, from https://www.scribbr.com/citing-sources/cite-a-journal-article/

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Reference List: Basic Rules

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Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

APA (American Psychological Association) style is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences. This resource, revised according to the 6 th edition, second printing of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page. For more information, please consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , (6 th ed., 2 nd printing).

Note:  This page reflects APA 6, which is now out of date. It will remain online until 2021, but will not be updated. The equivalent APA 7 page can be found here .

Your reference list should appear at the end of your paper. It provides the information necessary for a reader to locate and retrieve any source you cite in the body of the paper. Each source you cite in the paper must appear in your reference list; likewise, each entry in the reference list must be cited in your text.

Your references should begin on a new page separate from the text of the essay; label this page "References" centered at the top of the page (do NOT bold, underline, or use quotation marks for the title). All text should be double-spaced just like the rest of your essay.

Basic Rules

• All lines after the first line of each entry in your reference list should be indented one-half inch from the left margin. This is called hanging indentation.
• Authors' names are inverted (last name first); give the last name and initials for all authors of a particular work for up to and including seven authors. If the work has more than seven authors, list the first six authors and then use ellipses after the sixth author's name. After the ellipses, list the last author's name of the work.
• Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author of each work.
• For multiple articles by the same author, or authors listed in the same order, list the entries in chronological order, from earliest to most recent.
• Present the journal title in full.
• For example: ReCALL not RECALL or Knowledge Management Research & Practice not Knowledge Management Research and Practice.
• Note that the distinction here is based on the type of source being cited. Academic journal titles have all major words capitalized, while other sources' titles do not.
• Italicize titles of longer works such as books and journals.
• Do not italicize, underline, or put quotes around the titles of shorter works such as journal articles or essays in edited collections.
• Please note: While the APA manual provides many examples of how to cite common types of sources, it does not provide rules on how to cite all types of sources. Therefore, if you have a source that APA does not include, APA suggests that you find the example that is most similar to your source and use that format. For more information, see page 193 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 6 th ed., 2 nd printing.

MLA Citation Style Guide: Article in a Reference Book

• Parenthetical Citations
• Works Cited
• Journal Article from an Online Periodical
• Journal Article from an Online Database
• Magazine Article
• Magazine Article from a Database
• Newspaper Article
• Newspaper Article from a Database
• Newspaper Article from a Website
• Two or Three Authors
• More Than Three Authors
• Anthology, Compilation, or Edited Book
• Corporate Author
• Book with No Author
• Article in a Reference Book
• Multivolume Work
• Translation
• Basic Web Page
• Document from a Web Site
• Listserv, Blog, or Tweet
• Audiovisual Media
• Images and Art
• Indirect Source
• Government Publication

Article in a Reference Book (p.160-161)

When citing articles in a reference book, you generally follow the same format as you would for a work in an anthology.

However, you do not need to supply full publication information for well-known reference books in your Works Cited list.  Instead, you need only include the edition, publication year, and medium (see general format 2 and example 2 ).

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• Last Updated: Feb 27, 2018 9:34 AM
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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / MLA Format / How to Cite a Magazine Article in MLA

How to Cite a Magazine Article in MLA

Magazine: A publication that is issued periodically and contains items such as articles, essays, poems, or pictures.

Note that magazines are different from journals in that journals only contain scholarly articles that are peer-reviewed and relate to a specific academic field. If you are looking for the format for citing a journal article, this guide on citing a journal in MLA can help.

How to cite magazine articles published and found in print

Cite your source

How to cite magazine articles found on a website

Note:  When citing sources reproduced online from their in-print version, it is not necessary to include online information such as the website publisher or the date of electronic publication.

Published October 31, 2011. Updated May 18, 2021.

MLA Formatting Guide

MLA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Sample Paper
• Works Cited
• MLA 8 Updates
• MLA 9 Updates
• View MLA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all MLA Examples

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To create an in-text citation for a magazine found in print:

Place the author’s last name and the page number of the quote in parenthesis after the borrowed quote or information. Example: “Time spent with family or friends is more important now than ever” (Garcia 120).

To create an in-text citation for a magazine found on a website:

Place the author’s last name in parenthesis after the borrowed quote or information. No page number is needed. Example: “Every day I was excited to see my dad, the way you’re excited to be around a new friend” (Rothbart).

MLA is the style most often used in literature, language, history, art, and theater subjects.

No matter what citation style you’re using (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.) the EasyBib Citation Generator can help you create the right bibliography quickly.

To cite a magazine with multiple authors and no page numbers in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the authors, publication date, title of the article, magazine name, and the URL. The templates for in-text citations and works cited list entries of a magazine article written by multiple authors along with examples are given below:

In-text citation template and example:

For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues.” In subsequent citations, use only the surname of the first author followed by “and others” or “and colleagues.” In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the first author followed by “et al.”

Citation in prose:

First mention: Katherine Zoepf and colleagues . . . or Katherine Zoepf and others . . .

Subsequent occurrences: Zoepf and colleagues . . . or Zoepf and others . . .

Parenthetical:

. . . ( Zoepf et al.)

Works cited list entry template and example:

The title of the article is in plain text and title case; it is placed inside quotation marks. The title of the magazine is set in italics. Follow the format given in the template and example for setting the date, month, and year.

Surname, F., et al. “Title of the Article.” Magazine Name , Publication Date, URL.

Zoepf, Katherine, et al. “Shopgirls: The Art of Selling Lingerie.” The New Yorker , 15 Aug. 2019, www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/12/23/shopgirls .

Use only the first author’s name in surname–first name order in the entry, followed by “et al.”

To cite an online journal or magazine article in MLA style, you need to have basic information including the author, publication date, title of the article, journal or magazine title, volume and issue numbers, and the URL. The templates and examples for in-text citations and works cited list entries for an online journal article (with one author) are given below:

For citations in prose, use the first name and surname of the author in the first occurrence. In subsequent citations, use only the surname. In parenthetical citations, always use only the surname of the author.

First mention: Roger Dawkins . . .

Subsequent occurrences: Dawkins . . .

. . . (Dawkins)

The title of the journal or magazine article is in plain text and title case; it is placed inside quotation marks. The title of the journal or magazine is set in italics.

Surname, F. “Title of the Article.” Journal or Magazine Title , vol. #, no. #, Publication Date, URL.

Dawkins, Roger. “How We Speak When We Say Things About Ourselves in Social Media: A Semiotic Analysis of Content Curation.” M/C Journal , vol. 18, no. 4, 2015, www.journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/article/view/999 .

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'You're just scum': Nikki Haley fires back at Vivek Ramaswamy's attacks

MIAMI — Vivek Ramaswamy warned he’d be unconstrained at Wednesday night's debate, and unconstrained he was — leading to an intense moment when former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley called him “just scum.” 

Just minutes after first taking the stage, Ramaswamy went after three women: Haley, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel and NBC News' Kristen Welker, who was one of the debate moderators.

Read live debate updates here .

“We got trounced last night in 2023. And I think that we have to have accountability in our party,” Ramaswamy said of the previous night's elections in Ohio, Virginia and Kentucky, where Republicans suffered losses . “For that matter, Ronna, if you want to come onstage tonight, you want to look the GOP voters in the eye and tell them you resign, I will turn over my — yield my time to you."

But Ramaswamy kept up his focus on Haley, with the most intense moment coming when he went after her daughter. He said she had joined TikTok, even as Haley had criticized Ramaswamy at a previous debate for using the app despite its ties to China. 

“She made fun of me for actually joining TikTok while her own daughter was actually using the app for a long time,” he said. 

“Leave my daughter out of your voice,” Haley sneered.

“Just scum,” she added.

The attack came after Haley's dig at Ramaswamy at the second debate went viral.

"Every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say," Haley told him then.

After Wednesday night's debate, Haley said, "Look, I'm a mom. I'm a mom. So the second that you go and you start saying something about my 25-year-old daughter, I'm going to get my back up. But it's not even the personal part - there are serious differences I have with him."

Ramaswamy also kept the war of words going post-debate.

“If you look at the last several debates, you can ask her the same question,” Ramaswamy told reporters when asked about making personal attacks. “I think the last debate, she might have said that something like you feel she feels dumber every time she hears me speak? Well, I think ... she’s been exposed.”

Ramaswamy also went after Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis together on foreign policy during the debate, implying that Haley would drive the U.S. toward "the mistakes from the neocon establishment of the past." He asked the audience: "Do you want a leader from a different generation who's gonna put this country first? Or do you want Dick Cheney in three-inch heels?"

Ramaswamy then added: "In which case, we've got two of them on stage tonight."

Haley fired back soon after. "I'd first like to say, they're five-inch heels." And she added, "They're not for a fashion statement. They're for ammunition."

Ramaswamy also attacked Welker during the debate, referencing the 2016 election and "the corrupt media establishment" and then accusing her of taking part in a "Trump Russia collusion hoax that you pushed on this network for years. Was that real or was that Hillary Clinton made-up disinformation? Answer the question. Go."

“He is a supporter of women,” his wife, Apoorva, told NBC News after the debate. “I am a surgeon. I’m working I went to Yale for college and medical school and he has supported me in every stage of my career. He is extremely pro woman.”

NBC News asked Ronna McDaniel after the debate for response to Ramaswamy, and she said she wanted to keep the focus on Joe Biden.

But, she added, “I’m not going to focus on attacking other Republicans. I do think it’s a symptom of some of the things that we saw in '22 with Republicans attacking other Republicans. I don’t think that’s a winning strategy. So I’m going to focus on the border, fentanyl, crime — the issues that the voters want to hear about. And they really want to hear us take on the Democrats.”

Haley has been rising in the polls, challenging DeSantis for the second-place spot that he had comfortably held for months. During the debate Wednesday night, Haley was one of the top candidates who faced attacks from her rivals — and threw out attacks — according to NBC News' tracker.

Natasha Korecki is a senior national political reporter for NBC News.

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