Help:Footnotes

This page explains how to create numbered footnotes (endnotes) using, , and   syntax, which is the current best-practice method in most circumstances.

Footnotes are most often used in References and Usage Notes. See References and Usage notes for policy about each.

Single citation of a reference or footnote
At the point of citation in the entry, enter the footnote or reference like this:



You can include formatting and links in the footnote or reference in the usual way. The reference will become visible in the

Note that this must be added before you add any footnotes – if you try to add footnotes without a  present, the edit will be blocked.

Multiple citations of the same reference or footnote
To cite the same reference or footnote several times, identify it using the  parameter of the   tag.

At one of the citation points (it makes sense to choose the first), enter the reference like this:



Then at all the other citation points, just enter:



You are free to pick any footnote name, subject to a few rules. The footnote name is internal and will not be displayed anywhere when the page is viewed. Footnote names are case sensitive and may not be a numeric integer. The quotes are optional unless the name or group includes a space, punctuation or other mark. Names and groups should be kept simple and restricted to the standard English alphabet and numerals.

What it looks like
The  tags in the main text are converted to auto-numbered superscripts, like this:

Clicking on a numbered superscript takes you straight to the text of the corresponding footnote or reference.

The  tag is expanded to show the text of the footnotes or references against their corresponding numbers, like this:

{|class=wikitable

It is said that (of foo) is that of FUBAR. This could be why some use it today in a negative way
 * Etymology


 * Usage notes

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

Division by entry language
Footnotes inserted in a language entry should be shown in that same entry (rather than all at the bottom of the page). Identifiers such as name= and group= will not collide with each other across language entries.

When to use footnotes
There is no policy on when to use the  tags. Entry layout, the main policy on formatting, doesn't mention them. By convention footnotes are not widely used and most editors prefer to put references directly under the ===References=== header as bullet list entries.