Citation Help and Plagiarism Awareness: Defining Plagiarism

• Use or refer to someone else’s words or ideas
• Gain information through interviewing another person
• Copy the exact words or a “unique phrase”
• Reprint diagrams, illustrations, charts, pictures, videos, and music
• Use other people’s ideas (printed, or through conversations or email)

You don't need to cite when you...

• Write about your own experiences, thoughts, and opinions
• Use "common knowledge" that most people are familiar with, such as myths, folklore, common observations, or historical events, e.g., George Washington was the first president of the United States.
• Use generally accepted facts, such as the fact that exercise has positive health benefits.