Synonym: allude, direct, point, recommend, send. Similar words: reference, preference, defense, care for, reform, defender, refuge, defensive. Meaning: [rɪ’fɜr /-‘fɜː] 
v. 1. make reference to 2. have to do with or be relevant to 3. think of, regard, or classify under a subsuming principle or with a general group or in relation to another 4. send or direct for treatment, information, or a decision 5. seek information from 6. have as a meaning.
1, Can’t you refer to the dictionary?
2, The figures in parentheses refer to page numbers.
3, Don’t refer to the matter again.
4, I promised not to refer to the matter again.
5, We agreed never to refer to the matter again.
6, They come from Tuam, a place they refer to on the title track of their album, ‘All the Way From Tuam’.
7, Pronouns are often used to refer to a noun that has already been mentioned.
8, They decided to refer the dispute to the United Nations.
9, We should refer our application back to the manager as soon as possible.
10, The cross — references refer you to information in other parts of the dictionary.
11, This rule does not refer to children.
12, You may refer your complaint to an independent adjudicator.
13, He could refer the matter to the high court.
14, These regulations refer to every foreigner.
15, The figures refer to our sales in Europe.
16, Don’t refer to this matter again, please.
17, I cannot trace the letter to which you refer.
18, For further particulars I refer you to my secretary.
19, To whom should I refer the matter?
20, I refer to the situation instanced above.
21, Does your remark refer to all of us?
22, I had to refer to the instruction booklet.
23, You may refer to your notes if you want.
24, For further information,[http://sentencedict.com/refer.html] please refer to the relevant leaflet.
25, The regulations refer only to children.
26, The new law does not refer to farm land.
27, «Refer» and «level» are palindromes.
28, I will refer to child abuse generically .
29, The word «e-commerce» was coined to refer to business done over the Internet.
30, refer to sb/sth to mention or speak about sb/sth: The victims were not referred to by name.
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#1
Firstly, I searched the whole forum, I did not find what I need, so I have to post again.
Sometimes, I write a mail to somebody and enclose an attachment with mail, at the end of content, usually, I write » please refer to enclosed file for details»
I use «refer to» instead of «refer», but I saw somebody else uses «refer » instead of «refer to».
what’s right one?
Thanks
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#2
You are correct to use ‘refer to’.
Rover
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#3
The word refer is often used very loosely and vaguely. I’d prefer to say The enclosed file gives details. That’s no longer and avoids the imperative which some people may dislike.
Of the choices you give us, Nicoly, I’d always say refer to. But I’d do so with deep misgivings because in fact you are asking people to look at the file for details, not to refer to it for details. No wonder I dislike the way people use the word refer!
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#4
Rover is right, it should be ‘refer to’. ‘Refer’ on its own is a transitive verbe, so you would ‘refer attached (rather than ‘enclosed’) file to someone else. For instance, a doctor would refer a patient to a specialist for a consultation.
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#5
Dear Rover, Thomas , Elwintee :
Preciate your help!
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#6
Sorry, but I don’t agree with the implication that ‘refer’ can only be transitive. It is regularly used intransitively. We can see this is if we refer to an authoritative dictionary, such as Oxford or Chambers.
Oxford online:
[no object] (refer to) mention or allude to: her mother never referred to him again the Royal Navy is referred to as the Senior Service
[with object] (refer someone to) direct the attention of someone to: I refer my honourable friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago
(refer to) (of a word, phrase, or symbol) describe or denote; have as a referent: the star refers to items which are intended for the advanced learner
Chambers online:
refer to something
1 intrans to mention or make allusion to it.
2 intrans to look to it for information, facts, etc • referred to the notes at the back of the book.
3 intrans to be relevant or relate to it.
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#7
Hi wandle
what dose «refer to» mean in following sentence? I read it in a text book. I get very frustrated when people refer to me as Hispanic. Hispanic people speak Spanish. I speak Portuguese! How should I handle this type of situation?
dose it mean «..people mention me as Hispanic»? thank you.
Sorry, but I don’t agree with the implication that ‘refer’ can only be transitive. It is regularly used intransitively. We can see this is if we refer to an authoritative dictionary, such as Oxford or Chambers.
Oxford online:
[no object] (refer to) mention or allude to: her mother never referred to him again the Royal Navy is referred to as the Senior Service
[with object] (refer someone to) direct the attention of someone to: I refer my honourable friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago
(refer to) (of a word, phrase, or symbol) describe or denote; have as a referent: the star refers to items which are intended for the advanced learner
Chambers online:
refer to something
1 intrans to mention or make allusion to it.
2 intrans to look to it for information, facts, etc • referred to the notes at the back of the book.
3 intrans to be relevant or relate to it.
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#8
What does «refer to» mean in following sentence? I read it in a text book. I get very frustrated when people refer to me as Hispanic. Hispanic people speak Spanish. I speak Portuguese! How should I handle this type of situation?
dose it mean «..people mention me as Hispanic»? thank you.
Hello Xgll,
We wouldn’t say
‘people mention me as Hispanic’
. People refer to me as Hispanic means People call me Hispanic — they say I am Hispanic.
It’s an example of the very loose way in which people use this verb.
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#9
Hi wandle
what dose «refer to» mean in following sentence? I read it in a text book. I get very frustrated when people refer to me as Hispanic. Hispanic people speak Spanish. I speak Portuguese! How should I handle this type of situation?
dose it mean «..people mention me as Hispanic»? thank you.
In this sentence, it does indeed mean ‘People call me Hispanic’ or ‘say that I am Hispanic’.
It is an example of the first meaning of the verb given in the dictionaries quoted above.
Thus ‘the Royal Navy is referred to as the Senior Service’ means ‘the Royal Navy is called the Senior Service’.
This is a standard meaning of ‘refer’.
It is a useful word with a range of meanings which may take a little time to learn but are well worth knowing.
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#10
Firstly, I searched the whole forum, I did not find what I need, so I have to post again.
Sometimes, I write a mail to somebody and enclose an attachment with mail, at the end of content, usually, I write » please refer to enclosed file for details»
I use «refer to» instead of «refer», but I saw somebody else uses «refer » instead of «refer to».
what’s right one?
Thanks
If you write “I refer you to my letter …” , then you know you use the word “refer” correctly and confidently in this case.
However, if you write ”please refer to something for details”, you mean to direct people to “see, look at or find out…” some details elsewhere.
Definition of Refer
to mention or allude to
Examples of Refer in a sentence
The secretive woman warned her fiancé not to refer to their upcoming elopement in front of her father.
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When angry, I always refer to my daughter using her first and middle name.
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Parts of the ancient story refer to another tale that we have never heard before.
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No matter where she lives, the beach lover will always refer to the seashore as home.
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The author tends to refer to his pricy ebooks whenever given a chance to speak.
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1. What do the underlined words in sentences a-с refer to in the story? — . На что указывают подчеркнутые слова в предложениях a-с в истории?
a Some of them (booksellers) turned to greet me (the boy) from a distance — Некоторые из них (книготорговцы) повернулись, чтобы приветствовать меня (мальчика) издалека
b Do you think you’ll be able to keep this (place) a secret? — Как ты думаешь, ты сможешь сохранить это (место) в секрете?
с And you know the best thing about it (visiting the place)? — И ты знаешь самое лучшее об этом (посещение места)?
2. Rewrite sentences d-f from the story including the words that were left out. — Перепишите предложения d-f из истории, включая слова, которые были исключены.
d I looked at my father, stunned — I looked at my father and I was stunned — Я посмотрел на отца, ошеломленный — я посмотрел на отца, и я был ошеломлен.
e It’s a very important promise. For life. – It’s a promise for life. — Это очень важное обещание. На всю жизнь. — Это обещание на всю жизнь.
f It stood out timidly on one comer of the shelf, bound in wine-coloured leather. — It stood out timidly on one comer of the shelf, and it was bound in wine-coloured leather. — Она робко стояла на одном углу полки, обернутая в кожу цвета красного вина. — Она робко стояла на одном углу полки, и она была обернута в кожу цвета красного вина.