Footnote Citation Example
Footnote Citation Example: A footnote citation is a numbered note at the bottom of a page that credits a source. In Chicago style a book footnote reads: 1. Zadie Smith, Swing Time (Penguin Press, 2016), 315–16.
What is a footnote citation?
A footnote citation is a source credit placed at the foot of the page and tied to the text by a superscript number. The number appears after the quoted or paraphrased material, and the matching note gives full publication details. It keeps citations off the main line while staying visible.
Footnotes serve two jobs: they document sources and they hold brief asides that would interrupt the argument. In the Notes-Bibliography system, the first note for a source is complete, and later notes are shortened. A full bibliography usually appears at the end as well.
What does a footnote citation look like?
A Chicago book footnote lists the author in first-name-first order, then the title in italics, then publication facts in parentheses, then the exact page. Commas separate the parts, and the note ends with a period.
- Note number + author — superscript-linked number, then first name first
- Title — book title in italics
- Publication facts — city and publisher in parentheses
- Year — date of publication, closing the parentheses
- Locator — the specific page or page range cited
| Element | Full first note | Punctuation |
|---|---|---|
| Author | First name first | Comma after |
| Title | Italics (books/journals) | Comma after |
| Publication | City: Publisher, Year | In parentheses |
| Locator | Page number(s) | Period at end |
Footnote citation example for a book
Cite a book with the author, italicized title, parenthetical publication facts, and the page you used. The example below shows a single-author book; a chapter in an edited book adds the chapter title in quotation marks and the editor’s name.
Book1. Zadie Smith, Swing Time (Penguin Press, 2016), 315–16.
Two authors2. Michael Pollan and Judith Jones, Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation (Penguin Press, 2013), 42.
Chapter3. Henry David Thoreau, “Walking,” in The Making of the American Essay, ed. John D’Agata (Graywolf Press, 2016), 177–78.
Footnote citation example for a journal article
A journal footnote puts the article title in quotation marks and the journal name in italics, followed by volume, issue, year, page, and a DOI or URL when available. The volume takes no label; the issue is marked no.
Journal (print)4. Susan Satterfield, “Livy and the Pax Deum,” Classical Philology 111, no. 2 (April 2016): 170.
Journal (online)5. Shao-Hsun Keng, Chun-Hung Lin, and Peter F. Orazem, “Expanding College Access in Taiwan,” Journal of Human Capital 11, no. 1 (Spring 2017): 9–10, https://doi.org/10.1086/690235.
Footnote citation example for a website
Cite a web page with the author (if named), the page title in quotation marks, the site or organization name, a publication or revision date, and the URL. When no date is listed, add an access date before the URL.
Website6. Katie Bouman, “How to Take a Picture of a Black Hole,” TED, April 2019, https://www.ted.com/talks/katie_bouman.
No author7. “Balsamic Vinegar,” Wikipedia, last modified March 3, 2024, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balsamic_vinegar.
Full note vs. shortened footnote
The first footnote for any source is complete; every later note for that same source is shortened to the author’s last name, a short title, and the page. Chicago now prefers shortened notes over the Latin abbreviation Ibid., though ibid. is still permitted in the 17th edition.
| Type | Example |
|---|---|
| Full first note | 1. Zadie Smith, Swing Time (Penguin Press, 2016), 315–16. |
| Shortened note | 8. Smith, Swing Time, 320. |
| Bibliography entry | Smith, Zadie. Swing Time. Penguin Press, 2016. |
Note the differences from the bibliography entry: the bibliography inverts the author’s name (last name first), uses periods instead of commas, and drops the parentheses around the publisher.
Which citation styles use footnotes?
Chicago Notes-Bibliography and its student adaptation, Turabian, are the primary styles that cite sources in footnotes. Some legal (Bluebook) and humanities disciplines use notes too. APA and MLA cite in parentheses instead, reserving footnotes for supplementary comments.
- Chicago / Turabian — footnotes or endnotes are the standard citation method.
- MLA — uses in-text parenthetical citations; footnotes hold only extra notes.
- APA — uses author-date in-text citations; content footnotes are optional.
If your instructor asks for “footnote citations,” they almost always mean Chicago or Turabian style. Confirm the required edition, because the 18th edition (2024) refined a few web and AI-source rules.
How accurate are these examples?
These formats follow the official Chicago Manual of Style quick guide for the 17th and 18th editions and are correct for standard sources. They are not a substitute for your assignment’s rules, which may modify Chicago in small ways.
- Footnote and bibliography formats differ — do not copy one into the other’s structure.
- Unusual sources (interviews, datasets, social media, generative AI) follow special CMOS rules not shown here.
- The 18th edition changed some access-date and DOI guidance; verify against your required edition.
- Word processors auto-number footnotes, but you must still format the text of each note yourself.
Frequently asked questions
What is a footnote citation example?
A footnote citation example shows the exact text of a numbered note. In Chicago style, a book note reads: 1. Zadie Smith, Swing Time (Penguin Press, 2016), 315–16.
Which style uses footnotes for citations?
The Chicago Manual of Style Notes-Bibliography system and Turabian use footnotes to cite sources. MLA and APA use in-text parenthetical citations instead and reserve notes for extra commentary.
What is the difference between a full and a shortened footnote?
The first note for a source gives complete publication details. Every later note for that same source is shortened to the author’s last name, a short title, and the page number.
Do I still need a bibliography if I use footnotes?
Usually yes. Chicago’s Notes-Bibliography system pairs footnotes with a full bibliography at the end. Some assignments allow footnotes alone, so check your instructor’s requirements.
How do I insert a footnote in Word or Google Docs?
In Microsoft Word, place the cursor after the text and choose References, then Insert Footnote. In Google Docs, use Insert, then Footnote. The program numbers the note and you type the citation.
Are footnotes and endnotes the same?
They use identical citation formatting. Footnotes sit at the bottom of the page; endnotes are gathered together at the end of the chapter or document. Chicago allows either.