Research Guide: Citations

What's in this guide?

Welcome to the Citations Guide

To learn how to effectively cite sources for your essays, presentations and other projects:

  • explore the tabs on this guide
  • watch video segments on this page

Purpose of Citations

Citations are a way of giving credit to others for their ideas and work. In school, in jobs and in our personal lives, when we write an essay, give a presentation, make a speech, or record a video, we are often stepping into ongoing conversations and previous research around a topic. In the scholarly tradition of the United States, citations demonstrate that we have done our research and they give credit to those whose ideas and words we are building on.

Citations: The How and Why of Citing Sources

Citations: The How and Why of Citing Sources

Source: "Citations: The How and Why of Citing Sources" by Holman Library is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 Accessible.

Learn how to confidently create citations for essay papers, presentations, and other projects.

To find video segments in the "Contents" area: Click the carrot or the arrow at the bottom of the video player
Example:

(click on image to enlarge)

To find video segments, in the Contents area, click the carrot or the arrow at the bottom of the video player

Option: Use this worksheet to guide you through the video above and provide you practice on citing and plagiarism concepts:

Some content used with permission from Anne Arundel Community College Library.

This guide was last updated in July 2025. Please contact librarian@greenriver.edu if you encounter any accessibility issues or have questions.

Automatic Citation Generator

NoodleTools

Access online tutorials using the links below:

Quick Guides: APA and MLA

Citation Quick Guides