refer

Use Refer in a sentence

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verb (used with object)

to direct for information or anything required: He referred me to books on astrology.

to direct the attention or thoughts of: The asterisk refers the reader to a footnote.

to hand over or submit for information, consideration, decision, etc.: to refer the argument to arbitration.

to assign to a class, period, etc.; regard as belonging or related.

to have relation; relate; apply.

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verb (used without object)

to direct attention, as a reference mark does.

to have recourse or resort; turn, as for aid or information: to refer to one's notes.

to make reference or allusion: The author referred to his teachers twice in his article.

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to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.

to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.

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Origin:
1325–75; Middle English referren < Latin referre to bring back, equivalent to re- re- + ferre to bring, bear¹

Related forms

ref·er·a·ble, re·fer·ra·ble, re·fer·ri·ble

[ref-er-uh-buh

l, ri-fur-] , adjective

re·fer·rer, noun

mis·re·fer, verb, mis·re·ferred, mis·re·fer·ring.

pre·re·fer, verb (used with object), pre·re·ferred, pre·re·fer·ring.

un·re·ferred, adjective

well-re·ferred, adjective

Synonyms
4. attribute, ascribe, impute. 5. pertain, belong. 8. advert, allude.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To refer

Collins

World English Dictionary

refer (rɪˈfɜː)

—vb , -fers, -ferring, -ferred
1.	(intr) to make mention (of)
2.	(tr) to direct the attention of (someone) for information, facts, etc: the reader is referred to Chomsky, 1965
3.	(intr) to seek information (from): I referred to a dictionary of English usage; he referred to his notes
4.	(intr) to be relevant (to); pertain or relate (to): this song refers to an incident in the Civil War
5.	(tr) to assign or attribute: Cromwell referred his victories to God
6.	(tr) to hand over for consideration, reconsideration, or decision: to refer a complaint to another department
7.	(tr) to hand back to the originator as unacceptable or unusable
8.	(Brit) (tr) to fail (a student) in an examination
9.	(Brit) (tr) to send back (a thesis) to a student for improvement
10.	refer to drawer a request by a bank that the payee consult the drawer concerning a cheque payable by that bank (usually because the drawer has insufficient funds in his account), payment being suspended in the meantime
11.	(tr) to direct (a patient) for treatment to another doctor, usually a specialist
12.	(tr) social welfare to direct (a client) to another agency or professional for a service

[C14: from Latin referre to carry back, from re- + ferre to bear¹]

usage The common practice of adding back to refer is tautologous, since this meaning is already contained in the re- of refer: this refers to (not back to) what has already been said. However, when refer is used in the sense of passing a document or question for further consideration to the person from whom it was received, it may be appropriate to say he referred the matter back

referable

—*adj*

referrable

—*adj*

re'ferral

—n

re'ferrer

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

refer

late 14c., "to trace back, attribute, assign," from O.Fr. referer (14c.), from L. referre "to relate, refer," lit. "to carry back," from re- "back" + ferre "carry" (see infer). Meaning "to commit to some authority for a decision" is from mid-15c.; sense of "to direct (someone)

to a book, etc." is from c.1600.

Example sentences

As an option, print and copy these paragraphs so students can refer to the

information on their own papers.

They need to learn how to cite, how to refer, how to use quotation marks for

direct quotations as opposed to indirect ones.

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Words that are vulgar or offensive, or refer to unsavory topics.

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bear behind boundary clean common dexterous

Matching Quote

"Both gossip and joking are intrinsically valuable activities. Both are essentially social activities that strengthen interpersonal bonds—we do not tell jokes and gossip to ourselves. As popular activities that evade social restrictions, they often refer to topics that are inaccessible to serious public discussion. Gossip and joking often appear together: when we gossip we usually tell jokes and when we are joking we often gossip as well."

-Aaron Ben-Ze'Ev