How to Make a Parenthetical Reference to a Website
Citation is a way to identify and acknowledge outside ideas used to build your own case. Even websites need to be cited to show the legitimacy of an argument, and to avoid the ethical and legal repercussions of plagiarism. A citation can be included within parentheses located at the end of a sentence where information is quoted or paraphrased. There are many forms for different kinds of writing, but most are constructed in a similar order.
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Instructions
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MLA (Modern Language Association)
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1
Use MLA style when writing in the humanities.
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2
Write an open parenthesis followed by the website title or author's surname.
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3
Leave a space, and write the page number followed by a close parenthesis and a period.
APA (American Psychological Association)
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4
Use APA style when writing in the social sciences.
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5
Write an open parenthesis followed by the website title or author's surname and a comma.
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6
Leave a space, and write the publication year followed by a close parenthesis and period.
Chicago Manual of Style
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7
Use Chicago style when writing in the sciences.
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8
Write an open parenthesis followed by the website title or author's surname.
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9
Leave a space, and write the publication year and a comma.
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10
Leave a space, and write the page number followed by a close parenthesis and a period.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Many websites do not have page numbers, author names, or dates of publication. This information may be omitted as long as some acknowledgment of the source is made. If paragraphs or lines are numbered, this may be included in place of page numbers.
If the website corresponds to a traditional print format (like a magazine or newspaper), use the citation guidelines for that format. The Reference listing may require an additional notation that the article was accessed online.
All of these parenthetical citations must be accompanied by more complete bibliographical information in a Works Cited or References section at the end of your paper. For more on this, see the corresponding eHow article.
