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If I am using multiple quotes from the same source back-to-back, do I need to cite each quote? If it was a paragraph summary, I would just cite the source once as the end of the article, but the issue I'm having is that I have bits of text in between each quote. Here's an example (entirely made up):

Freud states, "[insert quote here]." Freud's position on the matter begins to shift when he states, "[insert quote here]." Lastly, he finalizes his position when he states, "[insert quote here]" (source).

or

Freud states, "[insert quote here]" (source). Freud's position on the matter begins to shift when he states, "[insert quote here]" (same source). Lastly, he finalizes his position when he states, "[insert quote here]" (same source again).

3 Answers 3

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You may use some classical Latin abbreviations, like "ibid." or "op.cit" which are precisely used to indicate that the last quotation has the same source as the previous one.

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The term for same source is ibidem, abbreviated to ibid. (include the dot).

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The method by which you cite something will change based on the style guide you use, but the need to provide a citation remains the same. (This is true of APA and anything else.)

Regardless, each quotation does need to have a citation provided—even if it's the same source previously used.

However, you can use ellipses within a quotation to indicate elided text, thereby allowing a single quotation and a single citation where individual pieces are not absolutely contiguous with each other. (There is no absolute rule for this, but such elisions are presumed to be of a paragraph or two at most, and common sense should prevail.)

You could also rephrase your running text so as to make it explicit that multiple quotations are coming from a single page, or a closely related range of pages, from the same source.

For example:

Between pages fifteen and seventeen of Book Title, Freud's [insert date] viewpoint is seen to change. First, he states, "[insert quote here]" . Then his position on the matter begins to shift when he states, "[insert quote here]." Lastly, he finalizes his position when he states, "[insert quote here]."

Here, you're deliberately providing the source of all three quotations within the running text, and wouldn't need to provide individual citations immediately after each quotation.

Depending on your style guide and citation style, you might need to provide more (or less) information in the running text than I did here. Per APA, I included author, date, and page range. The addition of the title does no harm. This is not the APA style of a citation—but it's also not a regular citation, and the information is clear.

If you are unsure if this would be accepted by who you are submitting it to, forgo it and stick to the second example that you provided in your question.

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    Or I would suggest, as we have in an academic paper, "In *Book Title*[1] Freud's viewpoint changes several times; specifically "X", then "Y", then "Z". Then for reference 1: Book Title, publisher, date, pages 38, 49, 132-133.
    – Amadeus
    Commented Jul 15, 2018 at 18:02
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    @Amadeus That's possible too. It depends on if you're using endnotes (or footnotes) or in-text citations. The use of notes would make this particular issue simpler. Commented Jul 15, 2018 at 18:17

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