This tutorial shows how to insert citations in Microsoft Word.
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Hello, my name is Erin.
I am a technical writer and editor who shares step-by-step software tutorials and writing tips for the real world
on this channel and on my blog at erinwrightwriting.com.
Managing citations and sources for research papers, theses, dissertations,
and other nonfiction works can be overwhelming.
However, you can ease the process by using Microsoft Word’s citation and bibliography tools.
This tutorial covers six topics:
How to select a citation style.
How to insert citations for new sources.
How to insert citations for existing sources.
How to edit sources.
How to use citation placeholders.
And, how to insert bibliographies, reference lists, or works cited lists.
Please note that at the time this tutorial was recorded,
Microsoft Word did not offer the most up-to-date versions of several of our primary styles,
including APA, Chicago, and MLA.
Microsoft will update these styles in the future, so I encourage you to review the available
styles before using the citation and bibliography tools to ensure they include the style you need.
We will cover the steps to customize citation and bibliography styles in a separate tutorial.
I’ll be using Word in Microsoft 365.
The steps are the same in Word 2019 and Word 2016.
However, your interface may look slightly different in those older versions of the software.
To choose a citation style, begin by selecting the References tab in the ribbon.
Then, select your citation style from the Style menu in the Citations & Bibliography group.
Once you have selected your style, you can begin inserting a citation for a new source
by placing your cursor where you want to insert the citation.
Then, select the References tab in the ribbon,
followed by the Insert Citation button in the Citations & Bibliography group.
Next, select Add New Source from the drop-down menu.
Select the source type from the Type of Source menu in the Create Source dialog box.
There are many options to choose from beyond books and articles,
so be sure to scroll through the menu to find the option that most closely matches your source.
Once you’ve made your selection, enter the source information into the bibliography fields.
If you need to add additional information, select Show All Bibliography Fields
and then enter the source information into the additional fields.
When you’re finished, select the OK button.
Your citation should appear in your text where your cursor was inserted.
Once you have inserted a source, you can create additional citations to that source
without having to reenter the information.
To begin, place your cursor where you want to insert the citation.
Then, select the References tab in the ribbon.
Followed by the Insert Citation button in the Citations & Bibliography group.
Then, select the source from the drop-down menu.
Your citation should then appear in your text.
When you edit an existing source, you will also edit any existing citations
for that source in your current document.
To begin editing an existing source, select the References tab in the ribbon.
Then, select the Manage Sources button in the Citations & Bibliography group.
Select the source you want to edit in the Master List or the Current List in the Source Manager dialog box.
The Master List is stored in your computer and is accessible in all your documents.
The Current List is part of your current file and is only accessible to that file.
By default, Word stores new sources in both the Master List and the Current List.
I recommend editing from the Master List.
Once you’ve made your selection, select the Edit button.
And then enter your edits in the Edit Source dialog box.
Remember that you can select Show All Bibliography Fields, if necessary.
When you’re finished, select the OK button.
Select Yes or No in the alert box stating that you will be updating the source
in both the Master List and the Current List.
Strongly consider selecting Yes to update both lists if you plan to cite this source in future documents.
Now, select the Close button in the Source Manager dialog box.
Any citations for the source you just updated should be automatically updated.
You can use placeholders if your source information is not yet available.
To begin, place your cursor where you want to insert the citation placeholder.
Then, select the References tab in the ribbon.
Followed by the Insert Citation button in the Citations & Bibliography group.
From there, select Add New Placeholder from the drop-down menu.
The Placeholder Name dialog box will appear.
You can change the placeholder name or use the default name provided by Word.
Then, select the OK button.
Your placeholder will appear in your text where your cursor is inserted.
You can use the same placeholder in the future by selecting it from the Insert Citation drop-down menu.
When you are ready to replace the placeholder with a source,
return to the Manage Source button, select the placeholder in the Source Manager dialog box,
and then complete the steps we walked through in the previous section about editing sources.
Once you’ve inserted your citations and sources, you can insert your bibliography, reference list, or works cited list.
Please note that this is a basic overview.
We will cover Word’s bibliography tools in more detail in a separate tutorial.
To begin, place your cursor where you want to insert the bibliography, reference list, or works cited list.
Then, select the References tab in the ribbon.
From there, select the Bibliography button in the Citations & Bibliography group.
Select Bibliography, References, or Works Cited from the drop-down menu.
Your selection should appear in your document.
As always, remember to save your file to save your changes.
If you decide to manually create a bibliography, reference list, or works cited page,
you may want to look at my other video titled “How to Create Hanging Indents in Microsoft Word".
It is linked in the description box below.
The companion blog post for this video listing all the steps we just performed appears on
erinwrightwriting.com, which is also linked below.
Feel free to leave me a comment if there’s a specific topic related to Microsoft Word,
Adobe Acrobat, or Google Docs at that you would like me to talk about in the future.
And please subscribe to my channel and give this video a thumbs-up if you found it helpful.
Thank you so much for watching!
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