With reference to your request, I will support.
Source: tatoeba (17035)
Reference
/ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹəns/
Synonyms for "reference" (327 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (66)
Noun(33 words)
acknowledgmentadvocacyadvocatingadvocationaffective meaningallusionangleappeal toapplicabilityapplicationappositenessaspectbearingby-linecasecase in pointcertificate of charactercertificationcharactercharacter reference
Show 5 more words
Adjective(1 words)
afrikaans gids
Verb(7 words)
Strong matches (98)
confessionconfigurationconnectionconnotationconsequencecredentialcredentialscredit linecross referencecross-refercross-referencedemonstrationdenotationdiacritical markdirect attention todirectiondispositiondrifteffecteidolon
Noun(36 words)
consultationcontrolcontrol materialcontrol samplecreditcross referencedata point methoddenotationdenotationsdenote the quantitydocument elementdocument sourcedocumentationdocumenting sourcesdocumentsemployerepitomizingevidence gatheringsexcerptextension
Show 16 more words
focus starfootnotefootnotesgrade level scopeguideguide basedguidesharkinghomagehyperlinkincorporatingindexindex by orderindexing operationinformation sourceinterlinks
Verb(5 words)
Adjective(5 words)
Related words (163)
intimationinvokeitemletter of introductionlexical meaninglightlikenesslineamentsliteral meaninglookmake a cross-referencemake reference tomannermaterialitymeaningmentionmetaphornamingnotationnote
Show 70 more words
notificationovertoneparticularpatronagepertinencephasephasispithpointpractical consequencepunctuationpunctuation markspurportquotationrange of meaningreal meaningrecommendrecommendationrefer toreference markreferentreferralregardrelatednessrelationrelevanceremarkrespectscopeseemingsemantic clustersemantic fieldsemblancesenseshapesidesignaturesignificancesignificationsignificatumsignifiesimulacrumslantspan of meaningspecificationspiritstopstructural meaningstylesubstancesumsum and substancesymbolic meaningtenortestimonialtittletotal effecttotality of associationstouchstonetrademarktransferred meaningtributetwistunadorned meaningundertonevalueviewviewpointvoucherwise
Noun(61 words)
invocationsinvokinglinear programming handbooklink tolinksmanual production handbookmentioningmentionsmodel organism catalogmodel organism listmodel systemmost helpfulmost numberingmost standardnotenumbered page referenceoriginating frompattern baseplain-language guideplanning sample
Show 41 more words
point of referencepointerspolicy precedentpositive controlprecedentquoitingquotationquotequotesquotingrecommendationsrefreferrefereereference adjectivereference bookreference pointreference textreference trialsreference workreferencingreferentialrelationalreservedresourcerestrictedriferright contextsamplescaramouchsource bundlesourcessources of informationsourcingspot price benchmarkstandardstandard-checktext source markervilniusxrefyardstick
Adjective(8 words)
linguistic denotationnontextbookpopular culture referencesroman law principlesstandard procedurestep by step explanationunremarkable examurban studies resources
Determiner(1 words)
more electrical grounding
Adverb(1 words)
well documented scientific-record
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: citation, cite, mention, source, academic writing term.
- Sentence evidence is available for reference, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wordnet, opengloss, derived_reverse, moby, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "reference".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "reference"
Keep "reference" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "reference" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "reference", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "reference" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
31 entriesactionannotationbookcitation actioncodecommentcommunication actcomposecomputer codedescriptordesignationdocument navigationgood wordindicatorinditeinformation source
Showing 16 of 31 words.
More specific
24 entriesShowing 16 of 24 words.
Collocations
14 entriesacademic referencebibliographic referencecharacter referencecross referencefootnote referencein text referencereference bookreference datareference guidereference listreference materialsreference pagereference pointreference section
Inflections
5 entriesDerivations
8 entriesTranslations
26 translations across 20 languages.
Afrikaans
2 entries- referensie noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
- verwysing noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Arabic
1 entries- مَرْجِع noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Bulgarian
1 entries- референция noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 引用 noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Dutch
1 entries- referentie noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Estonian
1 entries- viide noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Finnish
3 entries- lähdeviittaus noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
- viite noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
- viittaus noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Galician
1 entries- referencia noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Georgian
1 entries- წყაროს მითითება noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Hindi
2 entries- उल्लेख noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
- संदर्भ noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Hungarian
1 entries- hivatkozás noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Māori
1 entries- tohutoro noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Navajo
1 entries- naaltsoos bitsʼą́ą́dóó ééhózinii noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Ojibwe
1 entries- mookijiwanibiig noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Persian
1 entries- ارجاعال noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Portuguese
1 entries- referência noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Russian
2 entries- рефере́нция noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
- ссы́лка noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Swedish
1 entries- källhänvisning noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Tagalog
1 entries- sanggunian noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Ukrainian
2 entries- посила́ння noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
- рефере́нція noun (academic writing: identification of a source)
Sample sentences
26 total sentences available.
Perry is mistaken in thinking that Emmet's theory was constructed without reference to Newtonian physics.
Source: tatoeba (33901)
This reference is valuable for my research.
Source: tatoeba (59186)
This reference book is of benefit to you all.
Source: tatoeba (59187)
Showing 4 of 26 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "reference"?
Closest matches include citation, cite, mention, source, academic writing term.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "reference"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.