Reference Meaning
/ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹəns/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA relationship or relation (to something).
nounA measurement one can compare (some other measurement) to.
Sentence Examples
With reference to your request, I will support.
Perry is mistaken in thinking that Emmet's theory was constructed without reference to Newtonian physics.
She made no reference to her illness but only to her future plans.
CEFR Practice Quiz
When writing the essay, she included a ____ to the famous study by Dr. Smith.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She included a list of ____ at the end of the essay to acknowledge all the sources she had used.
Word Origin & History
From Middle French référence, from Medieval Latin referentia, nominative neuter plural of referēns, present participle of referō (“return, reply”, literally “carry back”). Morphologically refer + -ence.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"A man is beloued of a man, in that he is a man, but all theſe are farre more eminent and great, when they ſhal proceed from a ſanctified ſpirit, that hath a true touch of Religion, and a reference to God."
— 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], “Charity, compoſed of all three kindes, Pleaſant, Profitable, Honeſt”, in The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition 3, section 1, member 3, subsection 1, page 349:
"Changes will befall, and friends may part, / But distance only cannot change the heart / And were I call’d to prove th’ assertion true, / One proof should serve—a reference to you."
— a. 1800, William Cowper, “An Epistle to Joseph Hill, Esq.”, in The Task, Tirocinium, and Other Poems, page 180:
"Y’are falne into a Princely hand, feare nothing, / Make your full reference freely to my Lord, / Who is ſo full of Grace, that it flowes ouer / On all that neede."
— c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii], page 365, column 1:
"The penchant for synthesizing the work of others that pervades British scholarship has been described by one of my cynical American colleagues as “a giant bibliography that is always eating its own tail.” By this he means that cliques of like-minded writers tend to reference each other’s work incessantly."
— 1990, Thomas L. Bell, “Political Economy's Response to Positivism”, in Geographical Review, volume 80, number 3, American Geographical Society, →JSTOR, page 314:
"Written information is a relatively new phenomenon. Depositing it and being able to reference it centuries later is not common human experience."
— 1994 September 26, Barry Chamish, quoting Louis Rossetto, “The End of the Book”, in The Atlantic:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
When writing the essay, she included a ____ to the famous study by Dr. Smith.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She included a list of ____ at the end of the essay to acknowledge all the sources she had used.