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Usage
Place this template near the top of articles that use the shortened footnotes for their citation style.
Wikipedia articles that use shortened footnotes for their citation style may be systematically tagged with {{Use shortened footnotes}}. The template facilitates article maintenance by enabling bots to recognize use of this format and by adding the article to the hidden category Use shortened footnotes. The template is invisible except in edit mode.
This template should be applied only to articles that exclusively use shortened footnotes with a separate list of full citations. It should not be applied to articles that use a mix of standard and shortened footnotes unless there is a consensus on the article's talk page that the article should be converted to shortened footnotes with a separate list of full citations.
Use of this template is part of a continuing effort to monitor the citation formats used in articles, to assist in maintaining consistent formatting within an article. It is not a temporary "cleanup" template. Therefore, do not remove the template without valid reason, such as a determination the article uses or should use a different citation format.
After being tagged, and bearing in mind article evolution, a WP:bot can eventually be programmed to clean up formats periodically, correcting any new introductions since its last visit, and updating the visit date on the {{Use shortened footnotes}} template. Note that no such bot exists at this point in time.
(MOSNUM script documentation may also be relevant to those interested.)
Syntax
{{Use shortened footnotes|date=January 2026}}
See also
- {{Use list-defined references}}
- Category:Use English templates (a similar set of templates, used to maintain the variety of English used within an article)