Q. Does the Chicago 18th (author-date style) use “para/paras” when referring to specific sections in websites? For instance, does the quotation that follows adhere to Chicago style? “APA Style provides a foundation for effective scholarly communication because it helps writers present their ideas in a clear, precise, and inclusive manner” (APA 2025, para. 1). Thank you!!
A. Yes, we do use those abbreviations; see CMOS 13.117, which shows how to cite a specific page, paragraph, section, volume, or the like in a parenthetical author-date citation in the text. The relevant example is this one:
(Claussen 2015, para. 2.15) or (Claussen 2015, ¶ 2.15)
For two paragraphs, you would use either “paras.” or “¶¶” (for these plural forms, see CMOS 7.15 and 10.49, respectively).
In your example, however, citing “para. 1” or “¶ 1” could be misleading because the paragraphs in the source you quote from aren’t numbered (see “About APA Style” at the APA Style website, archived September 3, 2025, at the Wayback Machine). Instead, you could refer to the first or opening paragraph in your text, but only if that information is relevant. If it’s not, then you don’t need to specify which paragraph; the source is relatively short, and the quoted text provides the key to its location on the page (via the Find tool in any browser). If you still want to add it to your citation, try this: (APA 2025, first para.).
For more on citing website content (including how to cite archived web pages), see CMOS 14.104. For abbreviating the names of organizations listed as authors in author-date citations, see 13.127.