Go to Author-Date: Sample Citations
The following examples illustrate the notes and bibliography system. Sample notes show full citations followed by shortened citations for the same sources. Sample bibliography entries follow the notes. For more details and many more examples, see chapters 13 and 14 of The Chicago Manual of Style. For examples of the same citations using the author-date system, follow the Author-Date link above.
Book
Notes
Note that a place of publication is no longer required in book citations (see CMOS 14.30).
Shortened notes
Bibliography entries (in alphabetical order)
For more details and examples, see CMOS 13.21–26 and 14.2–62.
Chapter or other part of an edited book
The page range for a chapter in a book is no longer required in bibliography entries (see CMOS 14.8). In a note, cite specific pages as applicable.
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
In some cases, you may want to cite the collection as a whole instead.
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.8–14.
Translated book
In the following examples, the author’s name follows Eastern order (family name first) rather than Western order (family name last); the author is therefore referred to as “Liu” in a shortened note, and the name is not inverted in a bibliography entry. See CMOS 13.75 for more details.
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.5–7.
Book Consulted in an Electronic Format
To cite a book consulted online, include either a URL or the name of the database. For downloadable ebook formats, name the format; if no fixed page numbers are available, cite a section title or a chapter or other number in the note (or simply omit). For citing a place rather than a publisher for books published before 1900 (as in the Moby-Dick example below), see CMOS 14.31.
Notes
Shortened notes
Bibliography entries (in alphabetical order)
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.58–62.
Journal article
Journal articles are usually cited by volume and issue number. In a note, cite specific page numbers. In the bibliography, include the page range for the whole article. For articles consulted online, include a URL (preferably one based on a DOI; see CMOS 13.7); alternatively, list the name of the database.
Notes
Shortened notes
Bibliography entries (in alphabetical order)
Journal articles often list many authors, especially in the sciences. For works by two authors, list both in the bibliography and in a note (as in the Dittmar and Schemske example above). For three or more authors, list up to six in the bibliography; for more than six authors, list the first three, followed by “et al.” (“and others”). In a note, list only the first, followed by “et al.” Note that the bibliography entry for the Dror example below (which credits eighteen authors) includes an article ID in place of a page range; in a note, specific page numbers may be cited as shown (see CMOS 14.71 for details).
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.67–86.
News or magazine article
Articles from newspapers or news sites, magazines, blogs, and the like are cited similarly. Page numbers, if any, can be cited in a note but are omitted from a bibliography entry. For articles consulted online, include a URL or the name of the database.
Notes
Shortened notes
Bibliography entries (in alphabetical order)
Readers’ comments are cited in the text or in a note but omitted from a bibliography.
Note
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.87–88 (magazines) and 14.89–98 (newspapers and news sites).
Book review
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
Interview
Interviews are usually cited under the name of the interviewee rather than the interviewer.
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.108, 14.109, and 14.110.
Thesis or dissertation
Note
Shortened note
Bibliography entry
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.113.
Web page
It is often sufficient simply to describe web pages and other website content in the text (“As of November 15, 2023, Google’s privacy policy stated . . .”). If a more formal citation is needed, it may be styled like the examples below. If a source does not list a date of publication or revision, include an access date. Alternatively, if a publicly available archive of the content has been saved using the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine or similar service, the link for that version may be cited.
Notes
Shortened notes
Bibliography entries (in alphabetical order)
In the notes, the title will usually come first (as in the examples above); in a bibliography entry, the source should be listed under the owner or sponsor of the site.
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.104.
Social media content
Citations of content posted to social media can usually be limited to the text (as in the first example below). A note may be added if a more formal citation is needed. In rare cases, a bibliography entry may also be appropriate. In place of a title, quote up to the first 280 characters of the post. Comments are cited in reference to the original post.
Text
Notes
Shortened notes
Bibliography entry
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.106.
Video or podcast
Notes
Shortened notes
Bibliography entries (in alphabetical order)
Unless it is clear from context, “video” or the like may be specified in the bibliography.
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.167–69.
Personal communication
Personal communications, including email and text messages and direct messages sent through social media, are usually cited in the text or in a note only; they are rarely included in a bibliography.
Note
For more details and examples, see CMOS 14.111.