Plagiarism in its simplest form is the act of taking someone else’s words or ideas and 
passing them off as your own. Plagiarism can occur in various forms, some of which are 
intentional and some of which are not. Intentional plagiarism includes failure to cite sources, 
failure to use quotation marks around material taken from another source, or citing false 
sources. Unintentional plagiarism can result when a writer accidentally paraphrases another’s 
words too closely or does not realize that something in his notes is worded exactly as it was in 
the source and reproduces it verbatim, without attribution. Whatever form it takes, the 
fundamental question of who is responsible for the ideas presented, and whether or not proper 
credit is given, will determine whether plagiarism has occurred. Whether the transgression was 
intentional or not is less important than that it occurred at all.