refer
[ri-fur]
- 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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- 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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Origin of refer
Synonyms
See more synonyms for refer on Thesaurus.com4. attribute, ascribe, impute. 5. pertain, belong. 8. advert, allude.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for referred
Contemporary Examples
The NRA opposes him because he referred to gun violence as a “public-health crisis.”
Dressed in golden garments, Perrers was referred to as "The Lady of the Sun" by the king.
And the media, meanwhile, has referred to her as every label under the sun, from “a man” to “transsexual.”
Exclusive: Michael Phelps’s Intersex Self-Proclaimed Girlfriend, Taylor Lianne Chandler, Tells AllAurora Snow
November 26, 2014
Instead, she is left with the option to go to vocational school, or what is referred to as lycée professionnel in France.
He met twice with Pope Francis and referred to the pontiff as a role model.
Historical Examples
To my mind, under the conditions I have referred to, such could not fail to be the case.
'Tis Sixty Years SinceCharles Francis Adams
For further information the reader is referred to other writers.
The Roof of FranceMatilda Betham-Edwards
He did not know what it referred to, and I read it verbatim.
Samantha Among the Brethren, Part 7.Josiah Allen's Wife (Marietta Holley)
He then referred to Blandois' disappearance, of which it was probable she had heard?
Little DorritCharles Dickens
She referred to her son's culpable connection with Baroness Duvillard.
The Three Cities Trilogy, CompleteEmile Zola
refer
- (intr) to make mention (of)
- (tr) to direct the attention of (someone) for information, facts, etcthe reader is referred to Chomsky, 1965
- (intr) to seek information (from)I referred to a dictionary of English usage; he referred to his notes
- (intr) to be relevant (to); pertain or relate (to)this song refers to an incident in the Civil War
- (tr) to assign or attributeCromwell referred his victories to God
- (tr) to hand over for consideration, reconsideration, or decisionto refer a complaint to another department
- (tr) to hand back to the originator as unacceptable or unusable
- (tr) British to fail (a student) in an examination
- (tr) British to send back (a thesis) to a student for improvement
- 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
- (tr) to direct (a patient) for treatment to another doctor, usually a specialist
- (tr) social welfare to direct (a client) to another agency or professional for a service
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Word Origin
C14: from Latin referre to carry back, from re- + ferre to bear 1
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
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for referred
refer
v.
late 14c., "to trace back (to a first cause), attribute, assign," from Old French referer (14c.) and directly from Latin referre "to relate, refer," literally "to carry back," from re- "back" (see re-) + 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. Related: Referred; referring.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper