• Citation Guides
• Yavapai College's plagiarism definition
• Consequences of Plagiarism at Yavapai College

Glossary of Terms

Academic Integrity - Academic integrity involves the application of honesty in the learning and research process. More than avoiding plagiarism or not cheating on a test, it also incorporates the principles of "trust, fairness, respect, and responsibility" ("Fundamental Principles of Academic Integrity," p.1). For example, a student applying academic integrity takes responsibility for researching several sides of an issue, for using the most authoritative and reliable sources, and for representing ideas fairly and accurately.

Annotated Bibliography - Similar to a regular bibliography in that it is a list of sources an author has identified in his or her research: books, articles, Web sites, etc. In addition to providing bibliographic information, an annotated bibliography contains a brief summary (usually about 150 words) of the work as well as an assessment/evaluation of the item.

APA Style Format - The American Psychological Association style is one of several standards used for citing sources. The APA style is used mostly in the social sciences and sciences because it emphasizes the date of publication more than the other standards such as MLA. By emphasizing the date of publication, it makes it easier for researchers to pinpoint the most current research in a bibliography.

Bibliographic information/Bibliography - A list of sources: books, articles, web sites, etc. an author has identified in his or her research, which may or may not be cited in a document. It contains the pertinent bibliographic information of each item: author, title, publisher, date, etc.

Block Quote - If quoted material is 4 lines or longer (MLA) or more than 40 words (APA), it is formatted differently than shorter quotes. All lines of the quoted material are indented from the left margin, double-spaced and the quotation marks are dropped. The in-text citation for a block quote is the same as for a short quote. Please refer to an MLA or APA manual or an online source for details.

Citation - Identifies the source of any idea, quote or information from another's work. Citations refer to both in-text citation and lists of sources used. Also see Bibliographic Information/Bibliography, Works Cited, References list

Direct Quote - See Quote

Ellipsis - Three periods (...) used to indicate where a word or words have been omitted from a quote. Quotation marks still need to be placed at the beginning and the end of a quote when an ellipsis is used.

In-text Citation - Provides brief information about the source used within the text of a document and is usually found at the end of a quote, paraphrase or summary. Enough information is placed within parentheses to help the reader locate the complete information about that source on the "Works Cited" (MLA) or "References" (APA) page. Any source listed in the "Works Cited" or "References" page must also be cited within the text.

MLA Style Format - The Modern Language Association style is one of several standards used for citing sources. MLA style is used mostly in the English and Humanities disciplines.

Paraphrase - The complete rewording of a passage or a sentence in a document into one's own words, style, and voice. The paraphrase is usually similar in length to the original short text but should not contain any of the original words if they are not commonly used terms. Most research references should be paraphrased. Like summaries and quotes, paraphrases require in-text citations.

Parenthetical Citation - See In-text Citation

Plagiarism - Yavapai College defines it as submitting any academic work which is not entirely the work of the student, deliberately or accidentally. This can include, but is not limited to, such practices as not giving proper credit to a source, expanding someone else's work without giving proper credit, adopting another's work as one's own, including the copying of print or electronic media, directly using someone else's ideas without giving proper credit, and deliberately changing selective words to misrepresent someone else's work as one's own.

Quote - A word-for-word copy of another author's passage within one's own work. This can be as short as one word or long enough (more than four lines or more than forty words) to require indentation and separation from one's own text.
All quotes need to be signaled within the text by either quotation marks or indentation (See Block Quote) and must be followed by in-text citations. "A good quotation from an original source can underscore a theme and introduce thoughts or direction, but quotations should be relevant, necessary, accurate, and limited" (Menager-Beeley and Paulos 7).

References List - the APA-style listing of all of the sources used. Please refer to an APA manual or an online source for APA style. Every source listed on this page should have been referenced at least once somewhere in the paper. See In-text Citation

Summary - A precise condensing of a lengthy passage into one's own words without losing the author's intent and meaning. Usually, a detailed summary will be about one-third of the length of the original work. A summary used in a paper may consist of a paragraph or several sentences. Like paraphrases and quotes, summaries require in-text citations.

Works Cited - The MLA-style listing of all of the sources used. Please refer to an MLA manual or an online source for MLA style. Every source listed on this page should have been referenced at least once somewhere in the paper. See In-text Citation