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Cite Your Sources

Learn why and how to cite books, articles, and other sources in your research paper..

Style Guides

About Chicago/Turabian

The Chicago Manual of Style, otherwise known as Chicago Style or CMOS, is a guide for grammar, usage, and citation that’s often used in the humanities and social sciences. For citation, the Chicago Manual is where you want to go for a comprehensive reference guide for citing lots of different types of sources. But it’s written for a professional researcher in mind. 

Turabian refers to Kate Turabian’s reference book Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Turabian adapts Chicago style for student writers. Her book provides information for citing in Chicago style, but it’s also a manual on research, writing, and formatting a research paper or thesis. 

You can access The Chicago Manual of Style (18th edition) online, or pick up A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (9th edition) in the Research and Instruction suite in Library 1025.

 

Chicago: One Style, Two Systems

To make this even more complicated, Chicago has two systems of citation: notes and bibliography and author-date.

Notes and bibliography style is primarily used by people working in the humanities, and author-date is used by people working in the social sciences. Since many social scientists at Hood use APA style, rather than Chicago, we're going to focus on the notes and bibliography style, which you may need to use in a history or art class.

Formatting Your Paper in Chicago/Turabian Style

Formatting the Document

  • Set 1-inch margins (top, bottom, right and left) and choose a single, readable font (like 12-point Aptos or Times New Roman).  
  • Double-space all text except block quotations, footnotes, and the bibliography. 
  • Number your pages, starting with the first page after your title page.  
  • Include a title page that contains the title of your paper, your name, your class information, and the date. Center the title about a third of the way down the page, skip several lines, then add your name, your class, and the date, each on their own lines.

 

Formatting Footnotes

  • Note numbers should always begin with “1” and follow consecutively through the paper. 
  • Note numbers should be placed at the end of the clause/sentence to which they refer and after any punctuation. 
  • Shorten notes whenever possible. If your paper includes a bibliography, your notes don’t need to duplicate the source information completely because your reader can easily access it. Shortened citations should generally consist of the author’s last name, a shortened title, and the page number.  
  • If your paper doesn’t include a bibliography, use a full in-text citation for the first mention of a source. You may use a shortened version in subsequent mentions.  
 

Formatting the Bibliography

  • Create your bibliography on a separate page at the end of your paper. 
  • All text should be single-spaced with a blank line between entries. 
  • Continue page numbering from the body of your paper. 
  • Write the word “Bibliography” in bold, center-justified, at the top of the page. 
  • Alphabetize by the first word in each entry (typically the first author’s last name). 
  • Create a hanging indent, where the first line of each entry is all the way to the left, and each subsequent line is indented.

Citing Sources in Notes-Bibliography Style

Citing Sources: Part 1

Learn the differences between a note, a shortened note, and a bibliographical citation, then build a citation using The Chicago Manual of Style online.

Citing Sources: Part 2

Learn when to use a note, a shortened note, and a bibliography.

Note vs. Shortened Note

When do you use a regular note, and when do you use a shortened note? Use this flow chart to make your decision.

Basically, if you have a bibliography you only need to use the shortened citation.

If you don't have a bibliography, you should use the full note the first time you mention a source in your paper, then use the shortened note in all of your subsequent mentions.

A flowchart showing when to use a shortened note and a regular note

Resources for Citing Sources in Chicago Style

Citing AI-Generated Content

AI-generated image

Always check with your instructor before using generative AI for any portion of a course assignment. Some courses may allow the limited use of generative AI; in others, the use of AI may be considered a violation of the Honor Code. No matter what, any time you use generative AI for an assignment, you must acknowledge and cite it. 

In Chicago style, you'll need to cite AI-generated content in the following way:

In the Text

The image of an alien listening to records and reading Baudrillard was generated on July 18, 2025, by Google's Gemini 2.5 Flash.

In a Note

  1. Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash, Google, July 18, 2025, https://g.co/gemini/share/1b09275c501d.  

In the Bibliography

Google. Response to "Generate an image of an alien who is really into obscure 1990s film. This alien listens to records and reads Baudrillard." Gemini 2.5 Flash, July 18, 2025. https://g.co/gemini/share/1b09275c501d.

For more information, see CMOS 14.112: Citing AI-Generated Content.

 

Share Links

Many AI tools have "share links," which should be included at the end of citations whenever possible so that your reader can see what prompts led to which responses. These links are usually located either in the top-right corner of the chat window or directly underneath the most recent response. If you're ever unsure where a share link is on a particular tool, you can always prompt the AI tool to guide you.

 

Acknowledgment Statements

You might use a generative AI tool in a part of your paper that is challenging to cite. For example, maybe you've used ChatGPT to help you create an outline, or you've brainstormed synonyms for specific words you tend to overuse. In those cases, you should create a note in your paper with an acknowledgement statement. An acknowledgment statement shows how you've used a particular AI tool in your work.

When it's possible, you should always include a share link to any prompts or conversations. But if the tool doesn't provide a link, you'll need to show your work in other ways. Your professor may ask you to include the entire conversation, with prompts, in the text or a note, or write a statement like the one below.

A sample acknowledgement statement might look like this:

I acknowledge the use of [insert AI system(s) and link] to [specific use of generative artificial intelligence]. The prompts used include [list of prompts]. The output of these prompts was used to [explain use]. 

Or this:

I acknowledge the use of ChatGPT (https://chat.openai.com) to generate an outline for the assigned essay. The prompts used included:

  • create an outline for a college level paper on the Cold War
  • include sections on foreign and domestic policy
  • write in an academic style. The output from these prompts was used to create an outline that was modified then used to write the final paper.

Generative AI is quickly developing, and different ways of using these tools will be allowed for different instructors and assignments. Always check with your professor to make sure your specific use of ChatGPT or other generative AI is permitted.