Citing The Tenth Amendment: A Quick Guide

how to cite the constitution amendment 10

The Tenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states that The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. When citing this amendment, the correct format is dictated by the Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation. This states that citations should begin with U.S. Const., followed by the amendment, section, and/or clause numbers as relevant. The term amendment is always abbreviated to amend. and is written in Roman numerals, so the correct citation format for the Tenth Amendment is U.S. Const. amend. X.

Characteristics Values
Start with U.S. Const.
Article, amendment, section, and/or clause numbers art., amend., §, and cl. respectively
Article and amendment numbers Roman numerals (I, II, III)
Section and clause numbers Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3)
Part of the Constitution that has been repealed or amended Include the year in parentheses
Part of the Constitution currently in force Do not include a date
Citing the federal constitution Use the abbreviation "U.S." before "Const."
Citing a state constitution Provide the official abbreviation of the state name and then use the word "Const."

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Citing Amendment 10 in APA style

To cite Amendment 10 of the U.S. Constitution in APA style, you must first understand the basic structure of such a citation. According to APA style, all citations of the U.S. Constitution begin with "U.S. Const.," followed by the article, amendment, section, and/or clause numbers as relevant. The terms article, amendment, section, and clause are always abbreviated as "art.," "amend.," "§," and "cl.," respectively. Preamble is abbreviated as "pmbl."

Article and amendment numbers are given in Roman numerals (I, II, III), while section and clause numbers are given in Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3). The Bluebook, which sets the standard for all legal citations, states that for parts of the Constitution currently in force, no date is included. However, if you are referring to a part of the Constitution that has been repealed or amended, include the year that the part in question was repealed or amended in parentheses.

Now, applying this structure to Amendment 10 of the U.S. Constitution, the citation would look like this:

> U.S. Const. amend. X

The "X" is used to represent the Roman numeral for 10. This citation format indicates that it refers to Amendment 10 of the U.S. Constitution.

If you are referring to a specific section or clause within Amendment 10, you would include those numbers using the appropriate abbreviations and numeral styles. For example, if you are citing Section 1 of Amendment 10, the citation would be as follows:

> U.S. Const. amend. X, §1

Remember, when using APA style, you don't need to include a reference to a website or a book as the source of your citation. The citation structure itself directs readers to the U.S. Constitution as the source.

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Citing Amendment 10 in MLA style

To cite Amendment 10 in MLA style, there are a few key formatting principles to follow. Firstly, MLA stands for Modern Language Association, and this format is commonly used for writing papers and citing sources within the liberal arts and humanities, as well as for literary research papers.

When citing Amendment 10, the MLA format is straightforward. Begin with the name of the document in italics, for example, "The Constitution of the United States". Next, write out "Amendment" in full, followed by the number, in this case, "Amendment 10". You can use Roman numerals for the number, but if you do so, ensure you also write out the number in Arabic numerals, for example, "Amendment X (10)".

In-text citations for online references should include the title of the page, the article or amendment number, and the section number. For example, "Constitution of the United States, amend. 10, sec. 2".

For print versions, you would use a page number instead. In the Works Cited entry, include information about where you accessed the document.

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Citing Amendment 10 in The Bluebook

The Bluebook is a style guide that outlines a uniform system of citation for legal documents. It is primarily used in the United States and is designed to ensure consistency and clarity in legal writing.

When citing Amendment 10 of the United States Constitution in The Bluebook, the following format should be used:

U.S. Const. amend. X

Here's a breakdown of the elements:

  • "U.S." refers to the United States, indicating that you are citing the federal constitution.
  • "Const." is the abbreviation for "Constitution."
  • "amend." is the abbreviation for "amendment," indicating that you are citing a specific amendment to the Constitution.
  • "X" represents the amendment number you are citing, in this case, Amendment 10.

It's important to note that The Bluebook specifies the use of small caps typeface for "CONST." and "AMEND." However, if you are unable to format your text in small caps, standard capital letters are also acceptable.

Additionally, if you are citing a specific section or clause within Amendment 10, you would include those details after the amendment number. For example:

U.S. Const. amend. X, § 1, cl. 2

In this example, "§ 1" refers to Section 1, and "cl. 2" refers to Clause 2 of Amendment 10. This format allows for precise referencing of specific provisions within the amendment.

Remember that The Bluebook provides comprehensive guidelines for legal citations and includes specific rules for citing constitutional provisions, statutes, case law, and other legal sources. It is always advisable to refer to the most recent edition of The Bluebook to ensure your citations are accurate and conform to the latest standards.

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Using Roman or Arabic numerals

When citing the U.S. Constitution, it is important to cite the specific pieces you are using instead of the whole document. APA style dictates that when referring to a whole constitution, simply indicating the constitution in the narrative is sufficient.

Article and amendment numbers are given in Roman numerals (I, II, III), while section and clause numbers are given in Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3). For example, the tenth amendment would be written as "U.S. Const. amend. X". The terms "article", "amendment", "section", and "clause" are abbreviated as "art.", "amend.", "§", and "cl.", respectively.

The Bluebook sets the standard for all legal citations and is a good resource for further guidance on legal citations. The Bluebook states that for parts of the Constitution currently in force, no date should be included. However, if you are referring to a part of the Constitution that has been repealed or amended, include the year that the part in question was repealed or amended in parentheses. For example, "U.S. Const. amend. XVIII (repealed 1933)".

In MLA style, include information about where you accessed the Constitution in the Works Cited entry. In the in-text citation, use article/amendment and section numbers instead of page numbers. For example, "Constitution of the United States, art. 1, sec. 4".

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Referencing repealed or amended sections

When referencing repealed or amended sections of the US Constitution, the general format remains the same as when citing other parts of the Constitution. All citations begin with "U.S. Const.," followed by the relevant article, amendment, section, and/or clause numbers. The terms article, amendment, section, and clause are abbreviated to "art.," "amend.," "§," and "cl.," respectively.

However, when referring to repealed or amended sections, it is essential to include the year of repeal or amendment in parentheses. For example, if you are citing a section of Amendment X of the US Constitution that was amended in 1990, your citation would look like this:

> U.S. Const. amend. X, § __ (1990)

The Bluebook, which is the style guide for legal citations, states that no date is necessary for parts of the Constitution currently in force. However, if a section has been repealed or amended, providing the date helps readers understand the historical context and validity of the cited section.

Additionally, when citing specific clauses within a section, use Arabic numerals. For example:

> U.S. Const. amend. X, § 3, cl. 2 (1990)

This format allows for precise referencing of specific clauses within amended sections of the Constitution.

Frequently asked questions

Begin with U.S. Const., followed by amend. X.

You can add the section number in Arabic numerals, for example: U.S. Const. amend. X, § 1.

No, according to The Bluebook, you should not include a date if you are citing a part of the Constitution that is currently in force.

In that case, you should include the year that the change was made in parentheses, for example: U.S. Const. amend. X (2023).

Use the abbreviation "amend." and provide the number in Arabic numerals, for example: "amend. 10, § 1".

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