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Tips for avoiding plagiarism

Even if you don't mean to plagiarize, it's still possible to do it without realizing it. It's important to understand that it's still plagiarism, even if it's accidental. By following a few basic tips, you can reduce the risk that you'll accidentally plagiarize.

Review the interactive to learn some basic tips for avoiding plagiarism.

If something is common knowledge, you don't need to cite a source. For example, "Paris is the capital of France" is a well-known fact which is not disputed, so you wouldn't need to include a citation for that fact.

How should you cite online sources?

The way you cite your sources will vary depending on how formal you need to be. For example, if you're writing a blog article it's often enough to simply link to the original source. You may also want to mention the original author's name and/or the name of the website to help your readers tell at a glance where you're getting your information.

An informal citation in a blog

If you're writing a more formal paper, you will generally need to use a specific format for citations. You can use a style guide such as the Chicago Manual of Style to give your citations a consistent style. For these types of citations, you may list the sources as footnotes or include a bibliography at the end (or both).

Visit the Purdue Online Writing Lab to learn more about the Chicago Manual of Style.