Get the right citation structure for sources published in Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Chinese and more. Free, no sign-up.
What this tool does
A citation is not just translated word by word. Spanish sources keep their original titles, French names keep their particles, Chinese authors keep surname-first order, and some styles ask for a translation of the title in brackets after the original. This tool gives you the structure template for the publication language you pick, with the author’s name order, title handling and date format spelled out, so a source in another language is cited as carefully as one in your own.
Why it matters
Good citations do quiet work. They let a reader find every source you used, they show that your argument rests on real evidence rather than memory, and they protect you: a clean reference list is much harder to challenge than a vague one. Most marks lost on referencing are not lost on difficult sources. They are lost on small, repeated slips — a missing year, a swapped initial, a title in the wrong case — that a quick tool pass catches before submission.
How to use it
- Pick the publication language of your source.
- Enter the author, year and title as printed.
- Copy the template and fill it in that order.
Worked example
A Spanish book by García Márquez, 1967: keep the original title ‘Cien años de soledad’, surname first, and add [One Hundred Years of Solitude] in brackets only if your style guide asks for a translated title. The tool’s Spanish template says exactly that.
Tips for good results
Never translate a source title and cite only the translation. The original title is what lets readers find the source.
Work from the source itself, not from another paper’s copy of it. And keep one style for the whole list: a single mixed entry undermines an otherwise perfect bibliography.
Honest limits
Templates describe structure, not a full style manual. Name order and title-translation rules differ between APA, MLA and Chicago, and transliteration of non-Latin scripts follows separate standards. Check your style guide for the final form.
Common mistakes to avoid
Common mistakes to avoid: copying a reference from another paper without checking it against the original, trusting a PDF filename for the title or year, and mixing two styles in one list. Each of these looks harmless alone and careless together. Run the tool, read its output once, and compare it with the source itself before you paste it into your document.
Before you submit
Run through this short check before you submit: is every author name spelled as it appears on the source, is every year present and correct, and does every in-text citation have a matching entry in your reference list? Read the list once from top to bottom rather than skimming it. Most referencing errors are found in that single slow read, and fixing them there is far cheaper than fixing them after a reviewer finds them. If one entry still looks odd after that read, check it against the original source before you change anything else.
Frequently asked questions
Is this tool really free?
Yes. It runs in your browser on this page, with no account and no payment. Nothing you paste leaves your computer.
Do I still need to check the result?
Yes, once. Tools apply rules; they cannot verify facts about your source. Compare the output with the source itself before submitting.
Can I use the output in my paper?
Yes. The output is a formatted reference or analysis for your own work. Keep the source’s facts accurate and the formatting consistent across your list.
What if the tool’s output differs from my style guide?
Trust the style guide. Tools encode the common rules of a style; your university or journal’s own sheet wins every disagreement. Use the tool to do the routine work, then apply the local rule where it differs.
Also available in Spanish: Traductor Multilingüe de Citas – Plantillas de Citas por Idioma, Gratis en Línea.