What does "MLA" stand for?
Modern Language Association
What is the proper format for an MLA heading?
Name Course name Teacher's name Due date (Day- month-year)
Should your heading be single-spaced or double-spaced?
Double spaced
What belongs in the upper right-hand corner of your paper?
Last name followed by a single space and your page number.
What font(s) are allowed in MLA format?
Legible font that have italics and regular font that look different from one another. (i.e. Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri)
What size must your font be?
12
How wide must your margins be?
1 inch on all sides
What size paper must you use if you are printing your paper?
8.5 x 11 inches
Where does the title of your paper belong?
Below your heading, centered, before the main portion of your heading.
How should the title of your paper be formatted?
Center the title. Do not underline, italicize, or place your title in quotation marks. Also write in Title Case.
When you directly quote from, summarize, or paraphrase an outside source, what must you do to avoid plagiarism?
Include an in-text citation at the end of the quote or at the end of the paraphrased or summarized sentence.
What is the format for an in-text (parenthetical) citation that does not name the author in a signal phrase?
Last name and page number example: (Vreeland 8).
What is the format for an in-text (parenthetical) citation that already names the author in a signal phrase (lead-in)?
Page number Example: (8).
What is a signal phrase?
A phrase, clause or sentence that that introduces a quotation. Also called a lead-in Example: Susan Vreeland writes that Magdalena "loves looking out at the sea" (8). Example 2: Magdalena is a pensive girl who longs "to sit for a painting" like her sister (Vreeland 8).
If there is no author given in a work that you are quoting in your paper, how do you cite this work in the in-text (parenthetical) citation?
Use shortened version of title in quotation marks Example: ("Magdalena" 8).
What spacing should you use for your paper?
Double Spacing
In MLA format, should you have additional space in between each paragraph of your essay since this is the way that newer versions of Microsoft Word automatically format your paper?
No you should fix it.
How should titles of short works, such as poems, articles, and short stories be formatted?
Put them in quotation marks
How should titles of long works, such as novels and plays be formatted?
Italicize longer works
If your teacher's directions for formatting vary slightly from the official MLA guidelines, which should you follow?
Your teacher's directions
When you use quoted or paraphrased information, where do you place the end punctuation for a sentence: before the in-text citation or after the in-text citation?
Place the end punctuation (period) after the last parentheses following the in-text citation.
What is the bibliography or list of sources called in MLA?
It is called a Works Cited page
Is the Works Cited page numbered?
Yes, it is numbered in the same way as the rest of the paper.
Does the Works Cited page count as a page of content or body?
No, but it is still numbered sequentially.
How are entries (sources) arranged in a Works Cited page?
Sources are arranged alphabetically, by author's last name. If no author is given, the title is used for alphabetizing.
Are entries numbered in the Works Cited page?
No.
What is a hanging indent?
It is the reverse of a paragraph indent. In a hanging indent, the first line is not indented, but all other lines are indented for each entry.
What is the correct way to indicate that no date is available?
n.d. is typed in place of the date.