In short
- Quote only when the exact words matter: a definition, a striking claim, or wording you will analyse.
- Copy the words exactly, and write the page number down at the same moment.
- Keep quotes short, and follow each one with your own explanation.
- Put the page in the citation the way your style asks, such as (Smith, 2020, p. 14).
The worst referencing job is the one at midnight before the deadline: a great quote in your draft, and no idea which page it came from. It’s entirely avoidable. The page number takes five seconds to note when you copy the words, and twenty minutes to find again later.
This lesson is part of step 6, sources for each chapter, where you decide which evidence goes where.
When to quote, and when not to
- Quote a definition you will build on, a claim so striking that the wording is the point, or a phrase you are going to analyse word by word (common in English, history and law).
- Paraphrase everything else: findings, arguments, background. It shows you understood the source, and markers usually reward that. See paraphrasing well.
- Don’t quote common knowledge or a whole paragraph to save time explaining it yourself.
How to quote well
Copy the exact words
Every word, capital and comma as printed. If you leave words out, show it with three dots (an ellipsis). If you add a word to make the sentence read, put it in square brackets.
Note the page at the same time
Write the page number next to the quote in your notes before you do anything else. For a PDF, use the page printed on the page, not the PDF viewer’s page count, which can differ.
Introduce it
Lead in with who said it and why it matters: “Smith argues that…”, “As the 2019 report puts it,…”. A quote dropped in with no introduction reads as padding.
Cite it with the page
Follow your style. In Harvard and APA the page goes in the brackets after the quote. In footnote styles it goes in the footnote.
Explain it
Say what the quote shows and how it supports your point. A useful rule: at least as many words of yours after a quote as there are in it.
An example
| Weak | Better |
|---|---|
| “Uniform policies had no measurable effect on attendance” (Patel, 2021). | Patel’s study of 40 schools found that “uniform policies had no measurable effect on attendance” (Patel, 2021, p. 112). This challenges the claim that uniform improves engagement, although the study only looked at one region. |
The source and its wording are made up for this lesson. The better version introduces the quote, gives the page, and explains what it shows.
Common mistakes
- Copying a quote with no page, meaning to “find it later”. Later is the night before.
- Changing the wording but keeping the quotation marks. A quote must be exact.
- Strings of quotes with little of your own writing between them.
- Quoting a quote without saying so. If Smith quotes Jones, say “Jones (cited in Smith, 2020, p. 8)”, or better, find Jones’s original.
Keep quotes and pages together in KanBananza and Peel
- Quotes mixed in with your own notes. Notes and quotes on each source keep them apart, each quote with its page. Free
- The quote is in a PDF somewhere. Highlight it in Peel’s reader and it’s saved as a quote with its page. Peel, free
- Which page was that, for this chapter? Sources used on every card has a page box and the live citation, ready to copy. Full Bananza
For your level
GCSE and A level
In English and history, short embedded quotes you then analyse score well. Keep them to a few words where you can.
University
Most subjects expect more paraphrase than quotation. Science and social science essays may have very few quotes at all.
Dissertations
Keep a quote bank per chapter with pages from the start. Over months of reading, it is the only way to find them again.
Questions
Do I need a page number for every quote?
In most styles, yes. Harvard and APA put the page in the in-text citation for a direct quote, for example (Smith, 2020, p. 14). Footnote styles such as OSCOLA and Chicago put it in the footnote. Check your style guide for the exact form.
What if the source has no page numbers?
Web pages and some ebooks have none. Most styles let you leave the page out, or use a section heading or paragraph number instead. Never make one up.
How long can a quote be?
Short quotes go in the sentence with quotation marks. Longer ones go in an indented block without quotation marks: APA does this from 40 words, and many Harvard guides from about three lines. Check yours.
Does quoting a lot lose marks?
It can. Markers want your own explanation of the evidence. Quote when the exact words matter, and paraphrase the rest.
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