How to Do Ibid in Chicago Style

Citing the Same Source Consecutively

1. Use the full footnote format the first time you cite a work. The first time you cite a work in your paper, place a superscript number at the end of the sentence and include a footnote with all of the same information that you have in your bibliography entry. However, in a footnote, you list the author's first name first and separate the elements of the citation with commas. The publication information is enclosed in parentheses. Add the page number or range to the end.^[3]

   1. Example of full footnote format for a book: F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (New York: Scriber, 2004), 88.
2. Shorten the footnote format for any subsequent citations. After you've provided the publication information once, there's no need to include it again. If you cite the same source a second time, type the author's name and title, followed by the page number.^[4]

   1. Example of shortened footnote format for a book: F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, 92-94.
3. Cite to "Ibid." if you cite the source again consecutively. Use "Ibid." after the shortened footnote format if you cite to the same source a third time in a row. This tells your reader that you're still referencing the same work.^[5]

   1. Example of consecutive citations:
      1. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (New York: Scriber, 2004), 88.
      2. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, 92-94.
      3. Ibid.
4. Add the page numbers if they differ from the shortened note. You need a footnote after every sentence in which you discuss, paraphrase, or quote a work. If you use "Ibid." by itself, you're directing your reader to the same page number or page range as the previous note. If the material you discussed in the subsequent sentence occurs on a different page, add the page numbers to let your readers know.^[6]

   1. Example of consecutive citations with page numbers:
      1. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (New York: Scriber, 2004), 88.
      2. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, 92-94.
      3. Ibid.
      4. Ibid., 96-98.

   Tip: Even if your paper will be in print form, make sure your use of "Ibid." won't be confusing to your readers. If your consecutive citations continue across two pages of your paper, you might want to include a shortened citation as the first footnote on the second page so your reader doesn't have to flip back.