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How to Cite Shakespeare in MLA | Format & Examples

Published on January 22, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on March 5, 2024.

The works of Shakespeare, like many plays , have consistently numbered acts, scenes, and lines. These numbers should be used in your MLA in-text citations, separated by periods, instead of page numbers.

The Works Cited entry follows the format for a book , but varies depending on whether you cite from a standalone edition or a collection. The example below is for a standalone edition of  Hamlet .

If you cite multiple Shakespeare plays in your paper, replace the author’s name with an abbreviation of the play title in your in-text citation.

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Table of contents

Citing a play from a collection, citing multiple shakespeare plays, quoting shakespeare in mla, frequently asked questions about mla citations.

If you use a collection of all or several of Shakespeare’s works, include a Works Cited entry for each work you cite from it, providing the title of the individual work, followed by information about the collection.

Note that play titles remain italicized here, since these are works that would usually stand alone.

If you cite several works by Shakespeare , order them alphabetically by title, and replace “Shakespeare, William” with a series of three em dashes after the first one.

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If you cite more than one Shakespeare play in your paper, MLA recommends starting each in-text citation with an abbreviated version of the play title, in italics. A list of the standard abbreviations can be found here ; don’t make up your own abbreviations.

Introduce each abbreviation the first time you mention the play’s title, then use it in all subsequent citations of that play.

Don’t use these abbreviations outside of parentheses. If you frequently mention a multi-word title in your text, you can instead shorten it to a recognizable keyword (e.g. Midsummer for A Midsummer Night’s Dream ) after the first mention.

Shakespeare quotations generally take the form of verse  or dialogue .

Quoting verse

To quote up to three lines of verse from a play or poem, just treat it like a normal quotation. Use a forward slash (/) with spaces around it to indicate a new line.

If there’s a stanza break within the quotation, indicate it with a double forward slash (//).

If you are quoting more than three lines of verse, format it as a block quote (indented on a new line with no quotation marks).

Quoting dialogue

Dialogue from two or more characters should be presented as a block quote.

Include the characters’ names in block capitals, followed by a period, and use a hanging indent for subsequent lines in a single character’s speech. Place the citation after the closing punctuation.

Oberon berates Robin Goodfellow for his mistake:

No, do not use page numbers in your MLA in-text citations of Shakespeare plays . Instead, specify the act, scene, and line numbers of the quoted material, separated by periods, e.g. (Shakespeare 3.2.20–25).

This makes it easier for the reader to find the relevant passage in any edition of the text.

If you cite multiple Shakespeare plays throughout your paper, the MLA in-text citation begins with an abbreviated version of the title (as shown here ), e.g. ( Oth. 1.2.4). Each play should have its own  Works Cited entry (even if they all come from the same collection).

If you cite only one Shakespeare play in your paper, you should include a Works Cited entry for that play, and your in-text citations should start with the author’s name , e.g. (Shakespeare 1.1.4).

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Caulfield, J. (2024, March 05). How to Cite Shakespeare in MLA | Format & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved October 15, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/mla/shakespeare-citation/

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How to Cite Shakespeare

Last Updated: January 1, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Michelle Golden, PhD . Michelle Golden is an English teacher in Athens, Georgia. She received her MA in Language Arts Teacher Education in 2008 and received her PhD in English from Georgia State University in 2015. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 339,036 times.

Shakespeare’s works follow a unique citation method that is specific to them. All citations are done parenthetically, which means that they appear within the text of your paper inside parentheses. There is certain information that must be included in citations of plays, including the act, scene and line numbers. Format them properly so that your reader knows exactly where your quoted material comes from.

Including Parenthetical Citations

• Don’t use quotation marks for paraphrased material.

• Cite this quote as it appears in the original source, such as: Much Ado About Nothing (2.3.217–24).

Formatting Parenthetical Citations

• Separate each of these numbers with a period.

• Most modern scholars prefer using Arabic numbers, but both formats are acceptable. [5] X Research source
• Write upper-case Roman numerals (I, II, III, etc.) for the play’s act number. Use lower-case Roman numerals for the scene number (i, ii, iii, etc.). For example, (IV.ii.56–57).

• If the range of line numbers is under 100, write: 66–84.
• If the range of line numbers is over 100, write: 122–34.
• If the range of line numbers extends from under 100 to over 100, write: 90–104.
• Put an en dash between the line numbers. This dash is slightly longer than a hyphen but not as long as a dash.

• In MLA format, write: (Shakespeare 3.4.40)

• For example, the citation for a stage direction would read: 3.4.40.1. This means that the stage direction is at Line 1 after Line 40. [9] X Research source

• When citing fewer than four lines of verse, you will use quotation marks around the quoted material. Then write the parenthetical citation, and follow that with punctuation (a period, for example).
• When citing four or more lines, you will use a block quote. There are no quotation marks, and the ending punctuation (a period, for example) will go at the end of the last line. Then include the parenthetical citation.

Quoting Shakespeare in the Text

• Othello recalls, "Upon this hint I spake: / She lov'd me for the dangers I had pass'd, / And I lov'd her that she did pity them" (I.iii.166–168). In this option, you need to include quotation marks where the spoken passage begins.
• ”OTHELLO: Upon this hint I spake: / She lov'd me for the dangers I had pass'd, / And I lov'd her that she did pity them” (I.iii.166–168). In this option, include quotation marks before you name the character, since this is how the name appears in the text.

• For example, write: “OTHELLO: Upon this hint I spake: / She lov'd me for the dangers I had pass'd, / And I lov'd her that she did pity them” (I.iii.166–168). [13] X Research source
• If you are quoting prose, then omit the slash and instead use a comma.

• Indent one inch from the left margin. The entire block quote will be set apart from the rest of your paper. Indent every line of the block quote one inch from the left-hand margin.
• Omit quotation marks. Block quotes are set apart from the rest of your text. Therefore, you do not need to set them apart by using quotation marks. [16] X Research source
• For example: Hippolyta, I woo'd thee with my sword, And won thy love, doing thee injuries; But I will wed thee in another key, With pomp, with triumph and with revelling. (1.1.19–22)

• If you are quoting prose, then you don’t need to preserve the line breaks. These will differ depending on the publication in which the work appears.

• Indent one inch on the first line and include the first character’s name in capital letters. Follow the name with a period. Then add a space and start the character’s dialogue. When you need to start a new line, indent an additional ¼ inch (putting this line one and ¼ inches from the left margin).
• Start a new line when another character speaks. Again, put this character’s name in capital letters and follow it with a period. Add a space and start the character’s dialogue.
• Include the parenthetical citation at the very end of the dialogue block.
• For example: HAMLET. No, by the rood, not so: You are the queen, your husband's brother's wife: And--would it were not so!--you are my mother. QUEEN. Nay, then, I'll set those to you that can speak. (3.4.14-17)

Including a Works Cited Page

• Depending on the citation style, the works cited page may be called a “bibliography” or a “references” page.
• Don’t just list the play that you’re citing. You need to indicate the publication in which the play appears.
• Alphabetize the works cited page.
• Shakespeare, William. “The Comedy of Errors.” The Oxford Anthology of Tudor Drama. Ed. Greg Walker. Oxford, UK: Oxford U P, 2014. 682-722. Print.
• Shakespeare, William. Love Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare. New York: Doubleday, 1991. Print.
• Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. Ed. Jill L. Levenson. New York: Oxford U P, 2000.
• Hamlet. By William Shakespeare. Dir. Dominic Dromgoole and Bill Buckhurs. Shakespeare's Globe, London. 25 April 2014. Performance.

• Each style is slightly different in terms of format. Follow one style for your entire paper.

• Align each entry on the left.

Community Q&A

• Italicize or underline the work’s title. It is important that you make the distinction in your paper between the title of a play and a character’s name. Many of these are one and the same, such as Richard III. [19] X Research source For example, for the title of the play, write: Macbeth . Do not underline or italicize if you are talking about the character of Macbeth. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/cite/
• ↑ http://drmarkwomack.com/mla-style/how-to-quote/quote-shakespeare/
• ↑ https://guides.library.duq.edu/c.php?g=983278&p=7124608
• ↑ https://libguides.css.edu/APA7thEd/APAFAQs
• ↑ https://bu.digication.com/wr100h2/Citation_Resources
• ↑ http://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/shakespeare/mla.html
• ↑ http://lib.pstcc.edu/c.php?g=106731&p=693753

About This Article

To cite Shakespeare, use parenthetical citations that include the act, scene, and line numbers at the end of the related passages. Be sure to cite both direct quotes and paraphrased sections! Remember to pull direct quotes from Shakespeare's original works rather than books about his works. When quoting a passage, always indicate which character is speaking by introducing them in your own writing, or including their name in capital letters at the beginning of the verse. To learn more from our English Ph.D. co-author, like how to include Shakespeare in a Works Cited page, keep reading the article! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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How to Cite Shakespeare in MLA Referencing

• 3-minute read
• 14th September 2019

Is this a dagger I see before me ? No. It’s a blog post about citing Shakespeare in MLA referencing. And that’s even more useful than a dagger, especially if you’re currently writing an essay . But how do you cite a Shakespeare play when using MLA referencing ? Let us explain.

Citing Shakespeare in MLA Referencing

When citing Shakespeare, you will need to adapt the basic MLA citation format slightly. The biggest difference is that, rather than page numbers, you need to give act, scene and line numbers:

Macbeth’s soliloquy lays the ground for his later torment, betraying his mental fragility early on (Shakespeare 2.1.33–61).

Here, we’re citing act 2, scene 1, lines 33–61 of the play Macbeth . Most MLA citations of Shakespeare will use this citation format. Some editions of Shakespeare plays feature paragraph numbers instead of line numbers, but you can use these for pinpoint citations as well.

Citing Multiple Shakespeare Plays

We have cited “Shakespeare” in the example above because he is the author. However, if you are referencing more than one Shakespeare play in the same essay, you will need to use the play title in citations instead. For example, we could cite both Othello and Macbeth as follows:

Shakespeare’s characters often express regret immediately after a misdeed, such as when Othello describes Desdemona’s death as “horrible and grim” ( Othello 5.2.236) or when Macbeth admits to being “afraid to think” about what he has done ( Macbeth 2.2.64).

Here, we’re citing act 5, scene 2, line 236 of Othello and act 2, scene 2, line 64 of Macbeth . Using the play titles in the citations makes it absolutely clear which text we’re citing each time.

In addition, if you’re citing multiple plays repeatedly, you can abbreviate the title of each play in citations. Othello , for example, could be cited as just Oth. to minimise repetition:

Iago’s reaction speaks volumes at this point ( Oth . 3.3.234).

You will still need to give the full title in the Works Cited list, though.

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Shakespeare in the Works Cited List

In the Works Cited list , standalone Shakespeare plays are cited in the same way as any book:

Surname, First Name. Title . Editor/Translator (if applicable). Publisher, Year of Publication.

In practice, then, we could cite a print edition of Macbeth as follows:

Shakespeare, William. Macbeth . Edited by Keith Carabine. Wordsworth Editions, 2005.

The format differs slightly if the work cited is part of an anthology . In this case, treat the poem or play like a chapter from an edited book. For example:

Shakespeare, William. Macbeth . The Oxford Shakespeare: The Complete Works , edited by Stanley Wells and Gary Taylor, Oxford University Press, 2005, pp. 969–994.

Here, we have the details of the container volume and the page range for the play as well. It is worth noting, though, that MLA referencing italicizes the titles of plays even when they are part of a larger anthology. This differs from a book chapter title, which would be in quote marks.

And if you’d like anyone to check the referencing in your writing, give our specialist proofreading services a try.

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Below are examples of several citation styles that can be used in papers, publications, and other projects.

A special thanks to Abbie Weinberg, Research and Reference Librarian at the Folger Shakespeare Library, for her expertise in preparing these citation styles.

If you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions, please contact us .

Citing a Specific Text

Modern language association (mla), in-text citation:.

(Shakespeare,  Romeo and Juliet from The Folger Shakespeare.)

Works Cited citation:

Shakespeare, William.  Romeo and Juliet from The Folger Shakespeare. Ed. Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, and Rebecca Niles. Folger Shakespeare Library, [datetoday].  https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/romeo-and-juliet/

American Psychological Association (APA)

(Shakespeare, n.d.)

References citation:

Shakespeare, W. (n.d.)  Much Ado About Nothing (B. Mowat, P. Werstine, M. Poston, and R. Niles, eds.). The Folger Shakespeare. https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/much-ado-about-nothing/

Chicago/Turabian

Footnote/endnote citation:.

William Shakespeare.  A Midsummer Night’s Dream . Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, Rebecca Niles, eds (Washington, DC: Folger Shakespeare Library, n.d.), accessed [datetoday]. https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/a-midsummer-nights-dream/

Bibliography citation:

Shakespeare, William.  A Midsummer Night’s Dream . Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, and Rebecca Niles, eds. Folger Shakespeare Library. Accessed on [datetoday]. Washington, DC: Folger Shakespeare Library.  https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/a-midsummer-nights-dream/

Citing the Entire Collection

( Shakespeare’s Plays, Sonnets and Poems from The Folger Shakespeare.)

Shakespeare, William.  Shakespeare’s Plays, Sonnets and Poems  from The Folger Shakespeare. Ed. Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, and Rebecca Niles. Folger Shakespeare Library, [datetoday].  https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/all-works

(The Folger Shakespeare. n.d.)

Folger Shakespeare Library. (n.d.)  Shakespeare’s Plays, Sonnets and Poems from The Folger Shakespeare. Retrieved from https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/all-works

Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, Rebecca Niles, eds.,  Shakespeare’s Plays, Sonnets and Poems (Washington, DC: Folger Shakespeare Library, n.d.), accessed [datetoday]. https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/all-works .

Shakespeare’s Plays, Sonnets and Poems , from The Folger Shakespeare, ed. Barbara Mowat, Paul Werstine, Michael Poston, and Rebecca Niles. Washington, DC: Folger Shakespeare Library. Accessed on [datetoday]. https://folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/all-works .

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ENGL 263 - Shakespeare

• Sources for Your Papers

Formatting a Paper for MLA Style in Word or Google Docs

Citing shakespeare's plays in mla.

• Need More Help?

Want to go more in-depth? Check out these guides

• Guide to MLA In-text Citations (Scribbr) A guide to using in-text citations in MLA style. This will be helpful for other sources you will cite beyond Shakespeare's work.
• Guide to MLA Works Cited Pages (Scribbr) A comprehensive guide to preparing the works cited page for an MLA paper (also known as a reference list or bibliography).
• MLA Style (Purdue Online Writing Lab) An extensive guide to MLA style covering both formatting and citations.
• ZoteroBib (aka zbib) A fast, free bibliography generator, powered by the same parser used for Zotero. This tool is more reliable than other bibliography generators. Remember to change the bibliography style from 'American Psychological Association 7th edition' (the default) to 'Modern Language Association 9th edition'. You are responsible however for double-checking the accuracy of citation outputs. You can always ask a librarian for assistance with citations!

The works of Shakespeare, like many plays, have consistently numbered acts, scenes, and lines. These numbers should be used in your  MLA  in-text citations, separated by periods, instead of page numbers.

The Works Cited entry follows the format for a book, but varies depending on whether you cite from a standalone edition or a collection. The example below is for a standalone edition of  Hamlet .

If you cite multiple Shakespeare plays in your paper, replace the author’s name with an abbreviation of the play title in your in-text citation.

Citing a play from a collection

If you use a collection of all or several of Shakespeare’s works, include a Works Cited entry for each work you cite from it, providing the title of the individual work, followed by information about the collection.

Note that play titles remain italicized here, since these are works that would usually stand alone.

If you cite several works by Shakespeare, order them alphabetically by title, and replace “Shakespeare, William” with a series of three em dashes after the first one.

Citing multiple Shakespeare plays

If you cite more than one Shakespeare play in your paper, MLA recommends starting each in-text citation with an abbreviated version of the play title, in italics. A list of the standard abbreviations can be found  here ; don’t make up your own abbreviations.

Introduce each abbreviation the first time you mention the play’s title, then use it in all subsequent citations of that play.

Don’t use these abbreviations outside of parentheses. If you frequently mention a multi-word title in your text, you can instead shorten it to a recognizable keyword (e.g.  Midsummer  for  A Midsummer Night’s Dream ) after the first mention.

Quoting Shakespeare in MLA

Shakespeare quotations generally take the form of verse or dialogue.

Quoting verse

To quote up to three lines of verse from a play or poem, just treat it like a normal quotation. Use a forward slash (/) with spaces around it to indicate a new line.

If there’s a stanza break within the quotation, indicate it with a double forward slash (//).

If you are quoting more than three lines of verse, format it as a block quote (indented on a new line with no quotation marks).

Quoting dialogue

Dialogue from two or more characters should be presented as a block quote.

Include the characters’ names in block capitals, followed by a period, and use a hanging indent for subsequent lines in a single character’s speech. Place the citation after the closing punctuation.

Oberon berates Robin Goodfellow for his mistake:

Frequently asked questions about MLA citations

No, do not use page numbers in your MLA in-text citations of Shakespeare plays. Instead, specify the act, scene, and line numbers of the quoted material, separated by periods, e.g. (Shakespeare 3.2.20–25).

This makes it easier for the reader to find the relevant passage in any edition of the text.

How do I cite multiple Shakespeare plays in an MLA paper?

If you cite multiple Shakespeare plays throughout your paper, the MLA in-text citation begins with an abbreviated version of the title (as shown here), e.g. ( Oth.  1.2.4). Each play should have its own Works Cited entry (even if they all come from the same collection).

If you cite only one Shakespeare play in your paper, you should include a Works Cited entry for that play, and your in-text citations should start with the author’s name, e.g. (Shakespeare 1.1.4).

Adapted from:

Caulfield, Jack. “How to Cite Shakespeare in MLA.”  Scribbr , June 2022, www.scribbr.com/mla/shakespeare-citation.

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