MLA HANDBOOK, 8th EDITION
"MLA Style" refers to the guidelines published by the Modern Language Association in the MLA Handbook.
The MLA Handbook publishes the Association's rules on how to format a paper, how to document research sources you use, and other matters of writing style.
The MLA Handbook is available at the library reference desks and is available for purchase, but students writers can refer to help guides like this for almost any question about MLA style.
If there's something this guide or the MLA Handbook doesn't cover, try searching the Ask the MLA-FAQ page from the MLA Style Center.
Why is MLA so important?
If you don't use a citation style to document the sources you used to help write a research paper, you're in danger of plagiarism.
Even if you don't mean to plagiarize, not citing your sources correctly might make it look as though you're passing someone else's words or ideas off as your own. There are serious consequences for plagiarism at Lone Star College.
The best way to protect yourself from plagiarism is to get familiar with MLA style and use it consistently.
Librarians are also standing by to help you with MLA and other citation styles: contact us with any questions you have about citation or MLA style.
MLA RESOURCES IN THIS GUIDE
What do you need help with?
- Format a Paper in MLA StyleThis page has a video and slideshow to help you format a document in MLA, plus a sample MLA paper.
- In-text Citations in MLAWhenever you refer to a research source in your paper, you must create an in-text citation so your reader has a little information about the source. This page has information and examples of how to format in-text citations in different situations.
- Works Cited Lists in MLAIn-text citations correspond to complete information about sources in the Works Cited list at the end of your paper. This page has formats and examples for Works Cited citations for different types of sources: books, textbooks readings, articles, videos, and more.
- Citing Sources from the DatabasesMost library databases will do your MLA citations for you, but you always need to double check them. This page has tips and videos for making sure your database citations are in proper MLA format.
- Annotated BibliographiesThis page has resources and examples for formatting an annotated bibliography and writing annotations. There's also a sample annotated bibliography with four sources.
- Interactive Practice with MLATry our drag-and-drop tutorial to practice formatting in-text and Works Cited citations in MLA.
- Other MLA ResourcesIf your question isn't answered by this guide or if you want more details on MLA, try some of the other resources the CyFair Library and others have created.
- Contact a LibrarianNot sure how to get started with MLA? Contact a librarian - we're here to help.
