APA Style glossary: citation and formatting terms defined
Quick answer
This glossary defines in one sentence the terms used most in APA 7: parenthetical citation, narrative citation, DOI, et al., hanging indent, secondary source and group author. Each term links to the guide on this site that explains it with examples.
What do the most common APA terms mean?
Affiliation. The institution an author belongs to; it appears on the title page.
Bibliography. A list of works related to a topic, cited or not. APA asks for a reference list, which includes only cited works.
Block quote. A direct quote of 40 words or more, set off with an indent and no quotation marks. See direct quotes.
DOI. A permanent identifier for an online article or book. In APA 7 it is written as a link: https://doi.org/...
Direct quote. The exact wording of another source, in quotation marks or a block, with a page number.
Et al. Short for "and others." Used for sources with three or more authors: (Lopez et al., 2023). See multiple authors.
Group author. An organization that signs a work in place of a person; written with its full name. See special sources.
Hanging indent. An indent where the first line sits at the margin and later lines move in. See indentation.
n.d. "No date." Written when a source does not give a publication year.
Narrative citation. A citation in which the author is part of the sentence: Rivera (2022) noticed that...
Parenthetical citation. A citation with author and year in parentheses at the end of the sentence: (Rivera, 2022).
Paraphrase. Another person's idea explained in your own words, with a citation. See paraphrasing.
Primary source. The original work where a fact or idea first appears.
Reference. The complete entry in the final list for a cited source.
Secondary source. A work that cites or discusses another. See secondary sources.
URL. The web address of an online source.