What Is Et al.?
Et al. is the abbreviation of Latin et alii — and others — used in citations when a work has three or more authors: first author's surname, then et al. APA 7 uses it only in in-text citations; MLA 9 uses it in citations and the works-cited entry alike. This page unpacks the definition, the mistakes graders see most, and a worked example you can pattern-match against your own draft.
James Parker, MLS
Citation & Formatting Reviewer · Master of Library Science; 9 years as a reference librarian coaching APA, MLA and Chicago styles
Quick answer
Et al. is the abbreviation of Latin et alii — and others — used in citations when a work has three or more authors: first author's surname, then et al. APA 7 uses it only in in-text citations; MLA 9 uses it in citations and the works-cited entry alike.
On this page · 4 sections
The definition, precisely
Et al. stands for the Latin et alii, meaning and others, and it solves one problem: a citation cannot spend thirty words listing eight authors. The abbreviation replaces every author after the first with two letters and a period. Chicago uses it too, though its thresholds differ — and knowing those thresholds is the whole skill, because the most common error in student papers is applying one style's rule inside another style's paper. The rules below cover the three styles you will actually meet.
The thresholds, precisely. APA 7: works with one or two authors name both every time; three or more authors reduce to first surname plus et al. from the first citation onward. MLA 9 draws the same line: one or two named, three or more become first author and et al., in citations and in the works-cited entry. Chicago names up to three authors in a note, and four-plus become first author et al.; the bibliography holds up to ten names before cutting.
Punctuation trips people more than thresholds do. Both words take a period: et al., never et. al or etal. No comma sits between the surname and et al. — Rivera et al., not Rivera, et al. — but APA adds a comma after the abbreviation when the citation continues: (Rivera et al., 2024). MLA needs no such comma: (Rivera et al. 88). Two-author works never take the abbreviation in any style; both surnames appear every time. Spell out and others in prose; the abbreviation belongs inside parentheses and notes.
The four mistakes graders see most
Every one of these shows up in a stack of sixty papers — usually more than once. Each pairs the error with the fix, so the table doubles as a pre-submission check.
| Common mistake | The fix |
|---|---|
| Using et al. for a work with two authors. | Every major style names both authors every time. The abbreviation starts at three authors (APA, MLA) or four (Chicago notes). |
| Writing et. al with the period after et. | Both words abbreviate: et al. — one period, after al. The other placements are the classic typo. |
| Inserting a comma between the surname and et al. | Rivera et al., never Rivera, et al. The only comma APA adds comes after, before the year. |
| Reusing an APA 6 rule that named up to five authors. | APA 7 dropped the five-author threshold. Cite three-plus authors as first surname plus et al. from the first mention. |
A worked example
A study written by Rivera, Chen, Osei and Novak lands in an APA 7 paper as (Rivera et al., 2024) on the very first citation — the old rule about naming all authors the first time died with the sixth edition. In an MLA 9 paper the same study reads (Rivera et al. 88), no comma before the page, and the works-cited entry itself begins Rivera, Diana, et al. Four authors, one surname, two letters and a period. Different styles, same abbreviation, different punctuation.
Pattern-match your own draft against this example rather than against the definition: concrete cases transfer better than abstract rules, and the example shows what the rule looks like when it is done right.
How et al. differs from its neighbors
Et al. is not an ampersand. The ampersand joins exactly two named authors in an APA parenthetical — (Nguyen & Park, 2024) — while et al. stands in for unnamed ones. It is not et seq., which points to a page span in legal citation, and it is not idem, which marks the same author of a different work. One job only: replace the authors after the first when the style's threshold says you may. The legal shorthands belong in law reviews, not freshman papers.
Boundary confusion is where most grading deductions live: the term is understood roughly but applied against the wrong neighbor. Pin the boundary above and the term stops being fuzzy in practice, which is what the rubric is actually testing.
What's your next step?
Two taps to the exact page that unblocks this paper.
The 30-second check
Skim the four mistakes above against your draft. Any hit is a fix you can make in minutes — and the format row of the rubric is where they all live.
Run it through the tool
The free citation generator handles the mechanical half of this term — check it before you submit.
Open the toolRelated term: DOI — the neighbor this term is most often confused with. Reading the pair together is how the boundary sticks.
Frequently asked questions
4 answered1How many authors before et al. in APA 7?
Three. One or two authors are named on every citation; three or more become the first surname plus et al. immediately, including the first citation. The five-author rule students remember from older guides belonged to APA 6 and is obsolete. Nobody cites with APA 6 anymore.
2Does et al. take a period?
Yes — al. is itself an abbreviation of aliqui or alii, so the period belongs after it, and et takes none. The result is et al. with a single period at the end. Et. al, etal and et all are the standard typos to hunt in the final pass.
3Do I use et al. in the reference list too?
Depends on the style. APA 7 keeps in-text et al. for three-plus authors but still lists every author — up to twenty — in the reference entry. MLA 9 uses the abbreviation in both places: citations and the works-cited entry. Chicago splits the job between notes and bibliography with separate thresholds.
4What is the difference between et al. and and others?
Style contexts differ. Inside parentheses, footnotes and reference entries, the abbreviation is the standard machinery. In running prose, APA-style narrative citations still use it — Rivera et al. (2024) found — but a sentence that is not citing anything should say and others, or better, name the people. Reserve the abbreviation for the citation itself.
James Parker, MLS
Citation & Formatting Reviewer · Master of Library Science; 9 years as a reference librarian coaching APA, MLA and Chicago styles