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reference (n):
the act of referring or consulting
Samples
reference to an encyclopedia produced the answer

reference (n):
the most direct or specific meaning of a word or expression; the class of objects that an expression refers to
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the extension of `satellite of Mars' is the set containing only Demos and Phobos

reference (n):
the relation between a word or phrase and the object or idea it refers to
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he argued that reference is a consequence of conditioned reflexes

reference (n):
(computer science) the code that identifies where a piece of information is stored

reference (n):
a book to which you can refer for authoritative facts
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he contributed articles to the basic reference work on that topic

reference (n):
a formal recommendation by a former employer to a potential future employer describing the person's qualifications and dependability
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requests for character references are all too often answered evasively

reference (n):
a short note recognizing a source of information or of a quoted passage
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the student's essay failed to list several important citations.
the acknowledgments are usually printed at the front of a book.
the article includes mention of similar clinical cases

reference (n):
a remark that calls attention to something or someone
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she made frequent mention of her promotion.
there was no mention of it.
the speaker made several references to his wife

reference (n):
an indicator that orients you generally
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it is used as a reference for comparing the heating and the electrical energy involved

reference (n):
a publication (or a passage from a publication) that is referred to
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he carried an armful of references back to his desk.
he spent hours looking for the source of that quotation

reference (v):
refer to
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he referenced his colleagues' work

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