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Updated . Example details checked against Crossref, doi:10.2147/NSS.S62907.
The MLA format
Pattern
Last name, First name, and First name Last name. “Title of Article.” Journal Name, vol. #, no. #, Year, pp. #-#, DOI.
- Two authors: the first inverted, the second in normal order, joined by “and.” Three or more: the first author and “et al.”
- vol. and no. are lowercase abbreviations. This journal has volumes and no issue numbers, so “no.” is left out.
- Pages: “pp.” and the range. Past 99, give only the last two digits of the second number when the rest are the same: pp. 115-28.
- DOI as https://doi.org/ and the number. MLA prefers a DOI to a URL.
Found it in a database
A database such as JSTOR or EBSCOhost is a second container. After the first container’s date and pages, add the database in italics and its DOI or stable link: “... pp. 115-28. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2702737.”
A real example
Works Cited entry
Hershner, Shelley D., and Ronald D. Chervin. “Causes and Consequences of Sleepiness among College Students.” Nature and Science of Sleep, vol. 6, 2014, pp. 73-84, https://doi.org/10.2147/NSS.S62907.
In-text citation
(Hershner and Chervin 75)
When details are missing
- No DOI: use the database’s stable link or the journal page URL, without https://.
- No issue or no volume: leave the missing element out with its label.
- No page numbers (some online-only journals): leave pages out of the entry and the citation.
Common mistakes
- The article title in italics. The journal is italic; the article is in quotation marks.
- “Volume 6, Issue 2.” MLA writes vol. 6, no. 2.
- Full page ranges such as 115-128. MLA shortens the second number past 99: 115-28.
- “and” inside an APA-style ampersand. MLA writes “and” in the entry and the citation: (Hershner and Chervin 75).
Or let Format do it.
Paste the DOI and Format fetches the authors, title, journal, volume, issue, pages and year from Crossref. Format writes the Works Cited entry and the in-text citation in MLA 9, exactly as shown above, and builds the Works Cited page when you export to Word or PDF. MLA and APA are free.
Questions
Do I include the database name?
Yes, if you read the article in one, as a second container in italics with its link. If you use a DOI, the database is optional.
What if the article has 3 or more authors?
Give the first author and “et al.” in both places: (Lopez et al. 8).
Is the issue number required?
Include it when the journal has one. MLA lists every element the source has.
More citation guides
The same source in other styles
Similar sources in MLA
Every source kind is on the MLA page, and every style is on How to cite.