**`<cite>`** is specifically for referencing the **title** of a work, not the quotation itself and not the author's name. For example, in 'As Frank Herbert wrote in <cite>Dune</cite>, "..."', the `<cite>` wraps only the book title 'Dune', while the actual quoted text would use `<q>` or `<blockquote>`. It's a narrow, specific-purpose element — don't reach for it as a generic italics tag.
1Understanding <cite>
`<cite>` is specifically for referencing the title of a work, not the quotation itself and not the author's name. For example, in 'As Frank Herbert wrote in <cite>Dune</cite>, "..."', the <cite> wraps only the book title 'Dune', while the actual quoted text would use <q> or <blockquote>. It's a narrow, specific-purpose element — don't reach for it as a generic italics tag.
A common mistake is wrapping a person's name in <cite> to credit a quote — <cite> is for the TITLE of the work, not the author.
<p>The movie <cite>Inception</cite> was directed by Christopher Nolan.</p>2Practical Example
Here is a real-world application of <cite> showing how it is used in production HTML.
<!-- Citing a work alongside a quotation -->
<blockquote>
<p>"All happy families are alike."</p>
<footer>— Leo Tolstoy, <cite>Anna Karenina</cite></footer>
</blockquote>3Best Practices
Follow these guidelines when working with <cite>:
1. Use <cite> only for titles of works (books, films, songs, articles, papers)
2. Don't use <cite> to credit the author/speaker of a quote — that's just plain text or a <footer> in a <blockquote>
3. Combine with <blockquote> or <q> when citing an actual passage from the work
Tip: A common mistake is wrapping a person's name in <cite> to credit a quote — <cite> is for the TITLE of the work, not the author.
<p>The movie <cite>Inception</cite> was directed by Christopher Nolan.</p>