Citation, Documentation of Sources

Q. Hello. When the author uses the same source for five consecutive notations, should I give each a number and list it five times consecutively in the notes, or should I put only one number at the beginning (or end) of the paragraph, thereby listing it only once in the notes? Also, if the notations are apart from one another, I would have to give the source multiple numbers, I’m sure, but then do I re-reference the source, or can I say, for example, “113. See note 72,” or some such? Thanks!

A. Within a single paragraph, one note number will do. In subsequent paragraphs, use “ibid.” to refer to the work most recently cited. You can read about how to use the Latin abbreviation “ibid.” (from ibidem, “in the same place”) in CMOS 14.29 [16th ed.].

[Update: Chicago now prefers shortened citations in favor of ibid. For examples, see CMOS 14.34.]