If you’ve ever read an academic paper or scholarly journal, you’ve likely encountered the term’ ibid.’ and wondered what it means. The meaning of ‘ibid.’ is quite simple—it’s an abbreviation for the Latin word ‘ibidem.’ Writers use it to keep subsequent, consecutive citations tidy and their pages less cluttered.” Keep reading to go deeper into ibid’s meaning, the term’s significance, and how to use it.
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What is Ibid?
“Ibid.” is short for “ibidem,” a Latin word that literally means “in the same place.”
When you’re diving into academic papers or scholarly articles, you might spot this little abbreviation popping up in the footnotes or endnotes. But what’s it doing there?
Well, “ibid.” is a handy tool that writers use to avoid repeating the same citation over and over.
Let’s say you’re writing a paper, and you’ve just cited a book by Jane Smith on page 42. If your very next citation is from the exact same book and page, instead of writing out the full citation again, you can write “ibid.”
Remember, you should only use ‘ibid.’ when the immediately preceding citation is identical and no other sources intervene.
Quick Tip: How do you pronounce this quirky little word? It’s simple—say “IB-id.” Rhymes with “ribbed.”
Here are some examples of how you might see “ibid.” used in footnotes:
- Stephen Hawking, A Brief History of Time (New York: Bantam Books, 1988), 45. Ibid.
- Ibid., 54.
- Ibid., 78.
- Ibid., 102.
Fun Fact: Many Latin abbreviations like “et al.” (and others), “e.g.” (for example), or “op. cit.” (short for “opere citato”) have snuck their way into academic writing.
Did Chicago Manual Style Get Rid of Ibid?
Earlier editions of the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) did permit using “ibid.” Now, here’s where things get a bit tricky. Why? The 18th edition of CMOS (this was published in September 2024) recommends against using “ibid.” in favor of shortened citations.
So, if you are writing in Chicago style, you need to differentiate between the works. One way to do this is to shorten the title.
What About Other Style Guides?
Other style guides, like APA and MLA, do not use “ibid.” because these styles do not use footnotes. When you write in these styles, you use in-text citations instead. You usually do this with parentheses.
These parentheses refer to larger citations included in a list at the end of your paper. For example, an APA-style citation would be the last name of the author, the year of publication, and the page number(s).
On the other hand, an MLA citation would just include the author’s last name and page number(s). You can have a more complete citation at the end, but you never use “ibid.” for future references.
Elements of a Short Note
When you use a short note citation, the first reference of a citation would still be the same. However, the short-note citation would only be the authors’ last name, the title, and the page number referenced.
After the first full citation, subsequent citations use only the author’s last name, a shortened title (if the title is longer than four words, excluding common articles like ‘the,’ ‘a,’ or ‘and’), and the page number.
For example, “Doe, Theories and Case Studies, 39.”
Final Thoughts
As mentioned earlier, “Ibid.” is short for a Latin word that means “in the same place.” You use it to save time and space when repeating the same citation right after mentioning it. Although practical, major style guides like CMOS, APA style, and MLA don’t use it and recommend short notes or in-text citations.
