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MLA Format Microsoft Word 2019

This tutorial will guide you through the process of setting up Microsoft Word 2019 for your MLA Format paper. It is very easy and we are going to accomplish the following settings:

I. How to Set the Font and Size:

  1. We set the Font and Size under the Home tab (like in the image below).
  2. Click on the font and select Times New Roman.
  3. Click on the size and select 12.

Font and Size

II. How to Set the Margins in Microsoft Word 2019:

  1. Click on the Layout tab => click on Margins => click on Normal => the margins will then automatically be set to 1″ top, 1″ bottom, 1″ left, 1″ right.

Margins

III. How To Create a Header in Microsoft Word 2019:

  1. To create the header with your last name and automatic page numbering, click Insert => Page Number => Top of Page => then click on Plain Number 3.
  2. Press the Left Arrow key on your keyboard (to deselect the inserted page number)
  3. Now type in your Last Name => press the Spacebar on your keyboard once to make a space between your Last Name and the page number.
  4. Now we need to set the proper font: Select (highlight) your Last Name + Page Number => click on the Home tab => change the font to Times New Roman & Size 12.
  5. You are done with the header.
    To close the header, double click anywhere outside the header.
    To open the header again, use the same method, simply double click on the header.

IV. How to Setup Line Spacing to Double Spaced in Word 2019:

  1. Click on the Home tab.
  2. Click on the Line Spacing button.
  3. Click on 2.0.

V. How to Enter the First Page Information:

  1. Type your full name => press Enter.
  2. Type your professor’s name => press Enter.
  3. Type course title => press Enter.
  4. Type your paper’s due date => press Enter.
  5. Click on the Align Center icon on the formatting toolbar (to center your blinking cursor) => Type the title of your paper, capitalizing the first letter and all major words and proper nouns. Do not use italics, boldfaced type, underlining, or all caps to format your title. Do not type a period at the end of the title => press Enter.
  6. Click on the Align Left icon (to bring your blinking cursor to the left).
  7. Click on the Tab key to indent 1/2 inch to begin your first paragraph. Use the Tab key on every next new paragraphs. Your completed setting should look like this:Note: If your instructor requires you to create a cover page, please follow instructions here to make the cover page and the alternate first page.

VI. How to Setup the Works Cited Page:

Follow this how-to when you are ready to work on your Works Cited page. The Works Cited page has the following characteristics:

  • A heading “Works Cited” centered one inch below the top edge of a new page. Do not bold or underline this heading.
  • No indent on the first line of each entry. If an entry runs more than one line, indent the subsequent line or lines 1/2 inch from the left margin.
  • Alphabetize entries in your list of works cited by the author’s last name, using the letter-by-letter system.

Immediately after typing the final line of your paper, press the CTRL key and the ENTER key at the same time to begin a new page (another method is to insert a page break from the toolbar). Your header with your last name and automatic page numbering should already appear at the top right of your paper.

  1. Click on the align center icon so that the text is centered.
  2. Type Works Cited (do not underline, boldface, italicize, or enclose the title in quotation marks).
  3. Press the Enter key once to begin a new line.
  4. Click on the align left icon so that the text is aligned left.
  5. The feature to setup indentation on the subsequent line/lines is called Hanging Indent. To setup hanging indent, click on Home => click on Paragraphs => under Special, choose Hanging => enter the value By 0.5 (or 1/2 inch) => click OK to apply the settings.
  6. Now type your sources. If you have Internet sources, when you type the URL, Microsoft Word automatically applies the hyperlink to it. To remove the hyperlink, right-click on the URL => choose Remove Hyperlink.

Sample Works Cited Page:

Works Cited

You are done with the settings for Microsoft Word 2019. Take care!

{ 99 comments… add one }
  • Kabir November 17, 2020, 6:52 pm

    yes thanks

  • kristie November 16, 2020, 9:21 pm

    Thank you this will help me tremendously!!!!!

  • Josh October 22, 2020, 5:15 pm

    thank you so muchhhhh

  • Rylen Kahlbaugh October 20, 2020, 7:17 am

    Goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood

  • Alhaji Barrie October 19, 2020, 11:00 pm

    Very helpful. Thanks a lot!

  • DORIS GOMEZ October 16, 2020, 5:12 pm

    Thank you for the explanation, I appreciated.

  • madisom October 10, 2020, 6:17 pm

    Thanks this helps a lot

  • Jane October 1, 2020, 12:41 am

    Thank you so much for your instruction!

  • Richard Rivera September 23, 2020, 8:37 pm

    Great explanation for my upcoming assignments in the future.

  • Jamari September 23, 2020, 2:05 pm

    Thanks for the help!!

  • Olivia September 22, 2020, 6:48 pm

    Very detailed, perfect.

  • squid September 20, 2020, 5:41 pm

    thanks!

  • Steph September 8, 2020, 7:58 pm

    AMAZING AND ON POINT! Thanks for this!

  • Moises De La Cruz September 3, 2020, 6:44 pm

    Nice

  • ANJEANETTE JONES August 29, 2020, 6:22 pm

    Thank you so much for the step by step of setting up my paper MLA style ☺

  • Linda August 26, 2020, 1:13 pm

    Thank you so much for MLA format information. I’m happy this information is available. I have not typed paper in long time. I really like information it provides me with all details I need for my paper.
    Thanks
    Linda

  • Usman Ali Abbasi August 25, 2020, 6:43 am

    Thanks a lot. It’s life saving and time saving. I was very confused and had many questions and all of them were resolved here. Thanks again.

  • dalia alatorre August 22, 2020, 8:35 pm

    very simple.

    • Lydiah October 14, 2020, 6:51 am

      Can’t hesitate to say thankyou

  • Lambskin August 21, 2020, 1:04 pm

    Simple and to the point!

    Thank you.

  • Mary Miller August 18, 2020, 12:50 pm

    Additionally, you can add a citation through word by clicking on the References, clicking on the “Style” drop-down menu and selecting MLA, and clicking the “Insert Citation” drop-down menu and selecting “New Source.” You then fill out the information and click “Okay,” and it should generate a citation for you!

    You can also sort through your sources by selecting “Manage Sources” and in the “Sort By drop-down menu clicking “Author.”

    Thank you for providing information on how to utilize this resource to us. I just wanted to share a few things I’ve learned that have helped me save time and cite correctly.

  • Mary Miller August 18, 2020, 12:20 pm

    For the Works Cited Page, Microsoft Word also has an option to automatically generate one! Just choose the references tab, click on Bibliography, and the “Works Cited” option should be the 3rd option down.

  • Ajee June 30, 2020, 11:40 pm

    Very helpful. The screen shots were a great way to walk you through step by step.

  • lori June 15, 2020, 5:13 pm

    Thank you so much for this. everything is new to me and learning

  • Ashley Hayner June 6, 2020, 10:00 pm

    This was extremely helpful, thank you.

  • daniel dominguez May 2, 2020, 7:41 pm

    iam gratefull for help me to be better. I did have a good experience learning and was simple and easy to undestand

  • daniel dominguez May 2, 2020, 5:42 pm

    thanks i appreciatte the effort in this material it helps me a lot

  • Crystal April 1, 2020, 2:13 pm

    This is fantastic! I am just learning MLA and it’s so confusing for me.

  • Ultima March 13, 2020, 10:30 pm

    Thank you so much for the clear illustrations by taking us throughout the process. Very much needed article.

  • ambre February 21, 2020, 11:34 pm

    Thank you so much!! This helps alot to actually see it and read it instead of just reading it. All the step by step directions with pictures really help. Otherwise i would probably be lost.

  • Liza Hernandez February 19, 2020, 8:10 pm

    You are a lifesaver, thank you.

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