On this page
- MLA style edition and punctuation
- Key points
- Act of Parliament
- Advertisement
- Brochure
- Encyclopedia or dictionary entry
- Interview
- Lecture notes and study material
- Magazine articles
- Newspaper articles
- Presentation from conference and symposium proceedings
- Press release
- Report
- Thesis or dissertation
- Referencing disclaimer
- Related content
MLA style edition and punctuation
The examples on this page use the MLA 9th edition.
Punctuation is important. Use the same punctuation and formatting as the order instructions and examples (commas, full stops and brackets). Use 1 space after any punctuation mark.
In this edition, you don't need to state the publishing medium. For example, 'Print' for physical books and journals and 'Web' for online material.
Key points
Each source entry has 3 basic parts:
- Author – write the author's name in reverse order, family name first. The author or authors can be a person, people, an organisation or an institution.
- Title – capitalise the first letter of all words over 3 letters long.
- Publication information – start the URL with www, not https:// or http://.
If the source is less common, use a descriptive term at the end of the citation, for example, Postcard, Transcript, Keynote address or Blog post.
Act of Parliament
Because MLA is an American citation style, it does not have details on referencing New Zealand legislation. This format is sufficient in most papers.
Use the abbreviation 'No.' for the act number, for example, No. 1.
Order: Act title. Number, date, publisher. Retrieval details.
Example
Resource Management Act. No. 69, 1991, www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1991/0069/latest/whole.html. Reprinted 2018. Accessed 20 Sept. 2011
In-text citation example
The Resource Management Act (sec. 3) prohibits…
Include the page, paragraph or section number in the in-text citation. Don't include the act number.
If you are studying a law paper, more detailed formats are described in legal citations.
Advertisement
Order: Description of the advertised product or company. Source title, issue volume, number, publication date, page number, URL.
Example
Advertisement for New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. New Zealand Listener, 19 July 2008, p.43.
Italicise the source title and start keywords with a capital letter.
Brochure
Order: Source title. Description.
Include a description if required.
Example
Are You Warm This Winter? EcoEnergy Solutions, 2019. Brochure.
Encyclopedia or dictionary entry
Order: "Entry title." Title of the container, edition number, publisher, date of publication, page number.
Examples
"Paragon." The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford UP, 1989, p. 451.
"Arguably." Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arguably. Accessed 12 Oct. 2018.
Hoeg, Jerry. "Science in Spanish American Literature." Encyclopedia of Latin American Literature, edited by Verity Smith, Fitzroy Dearborn, 1997, p. 367
Online encyclopedia entry
Include the organisation name if known and the access date if required.
Order: "Encyclopedia entry." Encyclopedia title. Date posted or last update. Organisation name, URL. Access date.
Example
"Jacques Lacan." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 25 June 2011. Wikipedia Foundation, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Lacan. Accessed 28 June 2011.
Encyclopaedias and dictionaries can be a useful starting point for research, but academic sources are preferable.
Web pages don't always have the same quality controls as printed material. Many websites are not appropriate for an academic assignment unless they're evidencing the work of art or design practitioners.
Interview
Published interviews are referenced like books.
Put the interviewee's name first, followed by the interview title.
If the interview doesn't have a title, use 'Interview conducted by interviewer's name.'
Order: Interviewees names. "Interview title and interviewer name." Interview conducted by interviewer's name. URL.
Example
Hu, Yaobang. "Interview with Hu Yaobang". Interview conducted by Lu Keng. Sino Daily Express, 1985, pp.1-57.
Reference interviews you conducted yourself using the interviewee's name, the method of interviewing and the date. The method may be personal, telephone, Zoom or email interviews.
Example
Maharey, Steven. Personal interview. 22 Aug. 2008.
If an interviewee wishes to remain anonymous, don't include the interview in your works cited list. Instead, create an endnote that indicates the source is a personal interview along with details such as the method of communication, for example, phone, email, text message or in-person meeting and the date on which the interview took place.
Lecture notes and study material
Include the URL if the material was found online.
Lecture note
Order: "Lecture number or title." Course material, class code and name. Lecturers names, date, University, City, URL.
Examples
“Lecture 4.” 139.139 Introduction to English Studies, taught by Alice Weston, Semester 1, 2022, Massey U, Palmerston North, stream.massey.ac.nz/course/view.php?id=32958.
“Lecture 4.” 139.139 Introduction to English Studies, taught by Alice Weston, Semester 1, 2022, Massey U, Palmerston North, massey.zoom.us/j/9845684315.
Study guide
Order: Name of course material and the class code and name. Lecturers names, date, University, City, URL.
Example
Study Guide for 139.139 Introduction to English Studies. Taught by Alice Weston, Semester 1, 2022, Massey U, Palmerston North, stream.massey.ac.nz/course/view.php?id=32958.
Many courses at Massey University use a book of readings – a collection of photocopied journal articles, book chapters and other relevant material. Because the sections are direct photocopies, reference the original source not the book of readings.
In the in-text citation, cite the original source's author. Use the page number of the original source, not the page number in the book of readings.
Many lecturers prefer you to go outside academic sources rather than just relying on their wording and ideas. Doing research demonstrates that you can explore the topic outside the boundaries of the course materials. However, if your assignment instructions direct you to reference lecture notes and study guide materials, then do so.
Magazine articles
Order: Authors. "Article title." Magazine name, issue date, page range.
Example
Gopnik, Adam. "Freeing the Elephants: What Babar Brought." New Yorker, 22 Sept. 2008, p. 46.
Online magazine
Order: Authors. "Article title." Magazine name, publisher or website, issue date, URL. Date of access.
Example
McRory Calarco, Jessica. "Why Rich Kids Are So Good at the Marshmallow Test." The Atlantic, 1 June 2018, www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/06/marshmallow-test/561779/. Accessed 6 June 2018.
The Date of Access is optional, but it's good practice to add it if there is no date specifying when the article was published or if you think the content may change with time.
Newspaper articles
Include the newspaper edition if known.
If there is no author, move the article title to the author position.
MLA works cited list: List format – Author
Order: Authors. "Article title." Newspaper name, edition, issue date, section.
Examples
Watson, Lois. "Body Parts in Limbo When Amputees Can't Let Go." Sunday Star Times, 19 Oct. 2008, p. A8.
"Tobacco Firms Targeting Weight-Conscious Girls." New Zealand Herald, 22 Oct. 2008, p. A10.
Online newspaper article
Order: Authors. "Article title." Newspaper name, issue date, URL. Date of access.
Including the date of access is optional.
Example
Heagney, George. "Bird Owners Hope to be Pride of the Poultry Community." Manawatu Standard, 5 June 2018, www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/104456671/bird-owners-hope-to-be-pride-of-the-poultry-community. Accessed 5 June, 2018.
Presentation from conference and symposium proceedings
Published
Order: Authors. "Title of paper." Title of conference, conference location, conference date. Editor name, publisher, publisher location, date of publication, page numbers.
Include the conference location if it is not given in the conference title.
Example
Thumboo, Edwin. "Malaysian Poetry: Two Examples of Sense and Sensibility." National Identity: Papers Delivered at the Commonwealth Literature Conference, University of Queensland, Brisbane, 9th-12th August 1968. Edited by Ken Goodwin, Heinemann Educational, 1970, pp. 187-196.
Unpublished
Order: Authors, "title of paper." Title of conference, date, venue and location of conference. Descriptor of presentation.
Include the conference location if it is not given in the conference title.
Example
Shiva, Vadana. "Women Lead the Change from Violence to Non-Violence, From Greed to Caring and Sharing." 13th International Permaculture Conference and Convergence (IPC 2017 India), 25-26 November, 2017, Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Hyderabad, India. Keynote Address.
Use Lecture, Reading, Keynote speech or Conference Presentation for descriptor of presentation.
Presentation found online
Order: Authors. "Title of paper." Title of conference, conference location, conference date. Editor name, publisher, publisher location, date of publication, page numbers. Database used, URL.
Include the conference location if it is not given in the conference title.
Example
Schuldes, Heidi. "Highlights on Strangeness and Heavy-Flavour at Low Pt." 17th International Conference on Strangeness in Quark Matter, Utrecht, The Netherlands, 10-15 July 2017, edited by A. Mischke and P. Kuijer, 2 Feb. 2018, www.epj-conferences.org/articles/epjconf/abs/2018/06/epjconf_sqm2018_02001/epjconf_sqm2018_02001.html
Press release
Order: Authors. Source title. Publisher or retrieval details. Description.
Include the publisher or retrieval details if known. A description is optional.
Example
Sage, Eugenie. Less Waste for Wanaka With Fresh Funding. 3 July 2019, www.beehive.govt.nz/release/less-waste-wanaka-fresh-funding. Accessed 4 July 2019. Press release.
Report
Order: Authors. Report title. Report number, publisher details, year of publication.
Use the number descriptor – report number, contract number, monograph number, then the number itself for the report number, if available.
Examples
Dixon, Sylvia and Dave Mare. The Costs of Involuntary Job Loss: Impacts on Worker's Employment and Earning. Motu, 2013.
Fifth Assessment Report. United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2014.
When an organisation is both author and publication, move the report's title to the author position and list the organisation as the publisher. Do not include 'the' before the name of any organisation in the works cited list.
Online report
Order: Authors. Report title. Report number, publication date. Publishing organisation website name, DOI or web address. Access date.
Use the number descriptor – report number, contract number, monograph number, then the number itself for the report number, if available.
Examples
Dixon, Sylvia and Dave Mare. The Costs of Involuntary Job Loss: Impacts on Worker's Employment and Earning. Report no. 2, 2013. Motu, motu.nz/our-work/population-and-labour/individual-and-group-outcomes/the-costs-of-involuntary-job-loss/. Accessed 20 Sept. 2015.
Fifth Assessment Report. United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2014, www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar5/. Accessed 20 Sept. 2015.
When an organisation is both author and publication, move the report's title to the author position and list the organisation as the publisher. Do not include 'the' before the name of any organisation in the works cited list.
The Access Date is optional, but it's good practice to add it if there is no date specifying when the article was published or if you think the content may change with time.
Thesis or dissertation
Published and unpublished thesis or dissertation
Order: Authors. Dissertation or thesis title. Year degree was awarded, university, designation. Database and URL.
Examples
Beatty, Bronwyn. The Currency of Heroic Fantasy: The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter From Ideology to Industry. 2006, Massey U, PhD dissertation.
Beatty, Bronwyn. The Currency of Heroic Fantasy: The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter From Ideology to Industry. 2006, Massey U, PhD dissertation. ProQuest, search.proquest.com/docview/4589626909.
Use PhD dissertation or master's thesis for designation detail.
In MLA, university is denoted by a 'U'.
Include the database and URL if applicable.
Referencing disclaimer
This page is a guide to proper referencing. Your course, department, school or institute may prescribe specific conventions. Their recommendations supersede these instructions. If your questions are not covered here, ask your course coordinator or ask on our Academic Q&A forum.
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