Where does “reference” come from?
Reference comes from Middle French référence, from Medieval Latin referentia, from the Latin present participle referens of referre, meaning "to carry back," from re- plus the root bʰer- meaning "to carry."
reference (English): A relationship or relation; A measurement one can...
Definitions
- A relationship or relation; A measurement one can...
Ancestry of “reference”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle French | référence | — |
| 2 | Medieval Latin | referentia | nominative neuter plural of referēns; accusative... |
| 3 | Latin | referēns | returning, restoring, repaying |
| 4 | Latin | referō | to bear, bring, drive, or carry back, off, or away |
| 5 | Latin | rĕ- | back, backwards |
| 6 | Latin | prōdūcō | to lead or bring forth, forward or out |
| 7 | Latin | prō- | forward direction, forward movement |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | *pro- | pro- see the Latin entry for further meanings |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |
Words derived from “reference”
- referential
- referentiality
- referentially
- coreference
- coreferential
- dereference
- nonreferential
- coreferentiality
- georeference
- multireference
- nonreference
- backreference
- referenceable
- multireferential
- autoreferential
- nonreferentially
- nonreferentiality
- referenceless
- pseudoreference
- autoreference
- interreference
- interreferential
- metareference
- misreference