PERRLA/Guides/MLA 9/Book with an edition number

How to Cite a Book With an Edition in MLA 9

In an MLA 9 Works Cited entry, the edition comes right after the book title, in plain type and followed by a comma, before the publisher: Title of the Book. 15th ed., Publisher, Year. Write a numbered edition as a numeral with its ordinal ending and ed., and a named one as the book names it, like Rev. ed. for a revised edition. The edition never appears in the in-text citation, which stays the author's last name and the page: (Hinkle et al. 345).

The format

Last Name, First Name. Title of the Book: Subtitle. #th ed., Publisher, Year.

PERRLA MLA Experts ยท Updated October 27, 2026
Checked against the MLA Handbook, 9th edition. Every example is formatted by PERRLA's reference engine.

First, the easy way: PERRLA

For a book with an edition, adding it by hand is the surest way, because book catalogs often leave the edition out, tuck it into the title, or list the wrong year or publisher. Have the title page and copyright page open while you fill it in.

Choose Book, then Book, e-book, or audiobook, then All or part of a book. Add the authors and the title the way the title page prints them. In Edition, type the number (7 or 7th) and PERRLA writes 7th ed. in the right spot, after the title and before the publisher. For a named edition, type the name the way MLA shortens it, like Rev. or Commemorative, and PERRLA adds ed. Citing a classic reissued in a new edition? Choose Republished book instead, and type the first year in Original Publication Year. PERRLA handles the title case, the italics, and the punctuation.

Not using PERRLA yet? Here is how to build the same works cited entry by hand.

The parts of the works cited entry

1. Where the edition goes

MLA calls the edition the version, and it comes right after the title, followed by a comma. It isn't italic and doesn't go in parentheses. The publisher and the year come after it.

Brunner and Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing. 15th ed., Wolters Kluwer, 2022.

If the entry names other contributors after the title, like an editor or a translator, the edition comes after them: Edited by Name, 2nd ed.,

2. Numbered editions

Use a numeral with its ordinal ending, then ed.: 2nd ed., 3rd ed., 7th ed., 15th ed. Don't spell the number out (Seventh edition), and don't write the word edition in full.

15th ed.,

A first edition gets no edition note. Start with the 2nd edition, or with a named edition like a revised one.

3. Named editions

Some editions have a name instead of a number. Write the name the book uses and shorten edition to ed. MLA also shortens revised to rev., so a revised edition is Rev. ed. Expanded, updated, and commemorative editions keep their words: Expanded ed., Updated ed., Commemorative ed.

Rev. ed.,

The first word is capitalized because it starts a new part of the entry, right after the title's period. After an editor or translator, it goes lowercase: Edited by Name, rev. ed.,

4. Publisher

Give the publisher's name from the title page or copyright page, followed by a comma. Leave out the city and business words like Inc. or Company. In a university press's name, MLA shortens University Press to UP.

UP of Colorado,

When an organization wrote the book and also published it, skip the author, start the entry with the title, and name the organization only here, as the publisher.

5. Year

Give the copyright year of the edition you used, from its copyright page. A new edition is a new book as far as your entry is concerned, with its own year, its own pages, and sometimes its own authors.

2022.

Citing a classic reissued in a new edition? MLA lets you add the year it first came out right after the title, as its own short sentence. The edition and its own year follow.

From Novice to Expert: Excellence and Power in Clinical Nursing Practice. 1984. Commemorative ed., Prentice Hall, 2001.

6. What isn't an edition

A new printing, a reprint with corrections, or a paperback or hardcover isn't a new edition. Leave out 3rd printing and paperback. An e-book is a little different: MLA marks it in the same version spot, after any edition, as e-book ed.

11th ed., e-book ed.,

Don't name the store or the app, like Kindle or VitalSource. See our e-book guide for the details.

Examples

A numbered edition with several authors

The 15th edition of Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing (2022) has three authors, so MLA names the first and adds et al. The 16th edition came out with a 2026 copyright and a fourth author. If your course still uses the 15th, cite the 15th, with its own year.

  • In-text citation(Hinkle et al. 345)
  • Narrative citationHinkle et al. explain that … (345).

A numbered edition by an organization, with a DOI

The APA's own manual is in its 7th edition. The American Psychological Association wrote it and published it, so MLA starts the entry with the title and names the association once, as the publisher. The DOI goes at the end.

  • In-text citation(Publication Manual 35)
  • Narrative citationAccording to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, … (35).

A revised edition (Rev. ed.)

Jean Watson's book on caring science was reissued in 2008 as a revised edition with no number, so its version is Rev. ed. It has a DOI, which goes at the end.

  • In-text citation(Watson 17)
  • Narrative citationWatson argues that … (17).

A commemorative edition of a classic

Patricia Benner's From Novice to Expert first came out in 1984. The commemorative edition from 2001 keeps the edition's name, and the entry adds the original year right after the title, so your reader knows how old the ideas are. The in-text citation is still just the name and the page.

  • In-text citation(Benner 13)
  • Narrative citationAs Benner explains, … (13).

In-text citations

The edition stays in the Works Cited entry. The in-text citation is the same as for any book: the author's last name and the page, with no comma between them.

  • One author: (Watson 17)
  • Three or more authors: the first author and et al.: (Hinkle et al. 345)
  • Title first, because an organization wrote and published it: a short form of the title in italics: (Publication Manual 35)
  • A reissued classic: no years in the citation, just (Benner 13)
  • Name in your sentence: give the page alone at the end: Watson argues that … (17).

Citing two editions of the same book in one paper? Each gets its own Works Cited entry. Since the author and title match, MLA adds the first detail that tells them apart, usually the edition or the year, in square brackets in the in-text citation, like [15th ed.].

Common mistakes

  • Brunner and Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing (15th ed.).Brunner and Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing. 15th ed.,That's APA. MLA puts a period after the title, then the edition with a comma, and no parentheses.
  • Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring, Revised Edition.Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring. Rev. ed.,The edition isn't part of the title, so it stays out of the italics, and MLA shortens revised edition to Rev. ed.
  • Fifteenth edition,15th ed.,MLA uses a numeral with its ordinal ending and the abbreviation ed.
  • (Hinkle et al., 15th ed., 345)(Hinkle et al. 345)In the text, the name and the page are enough. The edition goes in only when you cite two editions of the same book, and then in square brackets.
  • Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring. Kindle ed., Rev. ed.,Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring. Rev. ed., e-book ed.,The edition comes first. If you read an e-book, add e-book ed. after it, and leave out the store or app.
  • Hinkle, Janice L., et al. Brunner and Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing. 16th ed., Wolters Kluwer, 2022.Hinkle, Janice L., et al. Brunner and Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing. 15th ed., Wolters Kluwer, 2022.Match the edition and the year to the copy you used. The 2022 copyright belongs to the 15th edition.

Quick checklist

  • Edition right after the title (and any editor or translator), followed by a comma
  • Plain type, no parentheses
  • A numeral with its ordinal: 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 15th
  • Named editions shortened: Rev. ed., Expanded ed.
  • No edition note for a first edition or a printing
  • The copyright year of the edition you used

Questions students ask

Where does the edition go in an MLA 9 citation?

Right after the title, with a period after the title and a comma after the edition: Title. 3rd ed., Publisher, Year. If the entry names an editor or translator after the title, the edition comes after them.

Is the edition italicized in MLA?

No. Only the title is italic. The edition is in plain type, with no parentheses around it.

Do I include 1st ed. for a first edition?

No. Leave the edition out for a first edition. Add it from the 2nd edition on, or when the edition has a name, like a revised or anniversary edition.

How do I write a revised edition in MLA?

As Rev. ed., after the title and before the publisher. MLA shortens both words: revised to rev. and edition to ed. Other named editions keep their name, with ed. after it, like Expanded ed. or Commemorative ed.

Does the edition go in the in-text citation?

No. The in-text citation is the author's last name and the page: (Watson 17). The Works Cited entry already tells your reader which edition you used. The one exception: if you cite two editions of the same book, add the edition or year in square brackets so your reader can tell them apart.

Is a Kindle edition a different edition in MLA?

Not a new edition, but MLA does mark it: write e-book ed. after any edition number, as in 11th ed., e-book ed. Leave the store or app name out. A regional version with its own title or authors, like a Canadian edition of a nursing text, is a different book, so cite the title and authors on the copy you used.

Rules checked against the MLA Handbook (9th ed.), chapter 5 (the core elements, including the version element and optional elements like the date of original publication) and chapter 6 (in-text citations), and the MLA Style Center's posts on citing an e-book, citing the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook (an organization as author and publisher, with 9th ed. after the title), and telling two editions apart in in-text citations. Example sources are the ones verified for the APA 7 page, re-checked Oct 27, 2026: the ECU library catalog record for the 15th edition of Brunner & Suddarth's, the Watson and APA manual DOIs at Crossref, and Open Library's records for Watson and Benner.

PERRLA puts the edition in the right spot, after the title and before the publisher, every time.

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