The Chicago Manual of Style (CMoS) is a guideline for writing and documenting sources. In addition to rules for presenting information, the guideline also contains rules for physical formatting of the work and the documentation of sources if the author has relied on them to construct the work. Documentation includes acknowledgements in the body of the work (in-text citations and narrative citations) and formal listing of the source in a Bibliography section of the work (bibliographic citation). Each type of acknowledgment consists of correct placement of specific information in a specific order using specific physical formatting.
Think of this CMoS Citation Guide as a box filled with documentation recipes for all kinds of sources–books, magazines, websites, professional journals, and more.
The formatting for bibliographic listing and narrative citation shown below adheres to the following guidelines:
- Citations in the bibliography are listed alphabetically by the first-named author’s last name, and the entire citation uses a hanging indent (second and subsequent lines for a source’s bibliographic information are indented one-half (1/2) inch).
- Narrative citations appear within the text.
Book (Basic)
The methods shown in the samples below use Author-Date style bibliography entries. For books that are not reprints and do not have editors or corporate publishers, the most obvious ingredients that distinguish one “recipe” from another are the type of source and number of individual authors.
One Author
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year, Title of work. Publisher.
Example:
Gumperz, John. J. 2001. Discourse Strategies. Cambridge University Press.
Narrative citation:
(Gumperz 2001, 24-34)
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Two to Six Authors
Bibliography Formula (list up to 6 Authors):
Last name1, First name1, First name2 Last name2, and First name3 Last name3. Year. Title of work. Publisher.
Example:
Collins, James, and Richard Blot. 2003. Literacy and Literacies: Texts, Power, and Identity. Cambridge University Press.
Narrative citation (2 Authors):
(Collins and Blot 2003, 24-35)
Narrative citation (3 or more Authors):
(Collins, et al. 2003, 24-35)
==========
Seven or More Authors
Bibliography Formula (7 or more Authors):
Last name1, First name1, First name2 Last name2, First name3 Last name3, et al. Year. Title of work. Publisher.
Example:
Smith, James, Jane Jones, Richard Bones, et al. 2003. Short Form Documentation Methodology. Cambridge University Press.
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Online Book
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year. Title of work. Publisher. URL or database.
Example:
Martin George R.R. 1996. Game of Thrones. Bantam Books. http://books.google.com/books/about/A_Game_of_Thrones.html?id=btpIkZ7X6egC.
Narrative citation:
(Martin 1996, chapter, page, or other location)
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Books (Edited, Reprinted, Corporate)
Entry (or Chapter) in an Edited Book
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year. “Chapter Title.” In Title of Work, edited by EditorFirstName LastName, ##-##. Publisher.
Example:
Gumperz, John J. 1992. “Interviewing in Intercultural Situations.” In Talk at Work: Interaction in Institutional Settings, edited by Paul Drew and John Heritage, 302-327. Cambridge University Press.
Narrative citation:
(Gumperz 1992, 302-327)
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Reprinted or Translated Book
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year. Title of Work, Translated/Edited by Translator/EditorFirstName LastName. Year. Reprint, Publisher.
Example:
Ogden, C.K., I.A. Richards, and W.T Gordon. 1989. The Meaning of Meaning. Translated by U. Eco. 1923. Reprint, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Narrative citation:
(Ogden, Richards, and Gordon 1989, 65).
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Corporate Author
Bibliography Formula:
Company Name. Year. Title of work. Publisher.
Example:
Vantage Learning. 2006. MY Access!® User’s Guide. Vantage Technologies.
Narrative citation:
(Vantage Learning 2006, 44-46)
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Article (Journal/Periodical, Database, Online Journal)
Articles in journals and other periodicals that use volume/issue numbering should not include the word “volume” but should include the abbreviation for number (no.) to denote an issue number.
Article in a Scholarly Journal or Periodical
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume# (issue#): ##-##.
Example:
Valencia S.W. 2001. “Inside English/Language Arts Standards: What’s in a Grade?.” Reading Research Quarterly 36 (2): 202-217.
Narrative citation:
(Valencia 2001, 202-217)
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Article in an Online Periodical (also in print)
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year. “Title.” Magazine / Journal / Newspaper title vol# (issue#): pages. DOI or URL.
Example:
McPherson, Miller, Lynn Smith-Lovin, and James M. Cook. 2001. “Birds of a Feather: Homophily in Social Networks.” Annual Review of Sociology 27 (8): 415-422. doi: 0360-0572/01/0811-0415S.
Narrative citation:
(McPherson, Smith-Lovin, and Cook 2001, 415-422)
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Article in a Database
Bibliography Formula:
Last name, First name. Year. “Title of work.” Journal vol # (issue#). ##-## OR URL OR Database Name (identification number).
Example:
Levin, Stephen M., Kann, Elizabeth P., and Lax, Michael B. 1999. “Medical Examination for Asbestos Related Disease.” American Journal of Medicine 37 (1). PubMed (10573594).
Narrative citation:
(Levin, Kann, and Lax 1999)