cross reference

¹ American  

noun

1. a reference from one part of a book, index, or the like, to related material, as a word or illustration, in another part.

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cross-reference ² American  

[kraws-ref-er-uhns, -ref-ruhns, kros-] / ˈkrɔsˈrɛf ər əns, -ˈrɛf rəns, ˈkrɒs- /

verb (used with or without object)

cross-referenced, cross-referencing

1. to provide with cross references.

   The new encyclopedia is completely cross-referenced.

2. cross-refer.

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cross-reference British  

noun

1. a reference within a text to another part of the text

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verb

1. to cross-refer

Etymology

Origin of cross reference¹

First recorded in 1825–35

Origin of cross-reference²

First recorded in 1900–05

Explanation

When a book mentions something from a different part of the same book, that's a cross-reference. In a textbook, a cross-reference might look like this: "See page 123." Cross-reference, "a reference in a book to another part of it," was coined in the 19th century. It's a way to add more information without going into wordy detail, similar to using a footnote or endnote in academic writing. If you look up "Amelia Earhart" in an index at the back of a book, you might see cross-references such as "See also: Earhart, Amelia" and "See also: aviators."

Example Sentences

"They are meant to cross reference to see if they are on a course, not on a course, or where they are," he said.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

JXN Water, the corporation Henifin formed to manage water infrastructure projects, will cross reference the Entergy customer records with city records to see what homes might be using water without a utility account.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 22, 2023

These people have different agendas and different biases, and you cross reference those lies.

From Salon • Feb. 29, 2020

Lenahan said while the car is “indescribable,” once investigators have the vehicle identification number, they will be able to cross reference any missing persons reports or other incidents related to the vehicle.

From Washington Times • Jan. 17, 2020

Also, the means that I employed in preparing this material did not lend themselves satisfactorily to preservation of the original pagination or of numbering and cross reference of pages.

From The Romance of Names by Weekley, Ernest