A simple definition of plagiarism is: Copying some text and using it without indicating that it was copied or where it was copied from.
To protect yourself from a charge of plagiarism, be sure to use quotation marks around any copied text you use, and at the same time, be sure you clearly show where you got the text.
These conditions apply to all printed materials as well as to all Web pages. It makes no difference where the text came from, or who wrote it, or which organization published it.
To put it another way: If you didn't write the words from your own mind, without looking at anyone else's words, then enclose those words in quotation marks and include a clear and accurate reference to the source.
copyright © 2005 by mindy mcadams