noun relation; regard; respect.
2. reference ·noun appeal.
3. reference ·noun one who, or that which, is referred to.
4. reference ·noun a work, or a passage in a work, to which one is referred.
5. reference ·noun one of whom inquires can be made as to the integrity, capacity, and the like, of another.
6. reference ·noun the act of referring, or the state of being referred; as, reference to a chart for guidance.
7. reference ·noun the act of submitting a matter in dispute to the judgment of one or more persons for decision.
8. reference ·noun that which refers to something; a specific direction of the attention; as, a reference in a text-book.
9. reference ·noun the process of sending any matter, for inquiry in a cause, to a master or other officer, in order that he may ascertain facts and report to the court.