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référence

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Etymology and origin of the French word référence

Confidence
Disputed
Formation
Derivation, Borrowing
First attested
c. 1820 Dumont's translations of Bentham More words from the 19th century
Ultimate origin
Latin referō
From the same root
English referee ← refer
English referral ← refer

Pronunciation

  • /ʁe.fe.ʁɑ̃s/[1]

Forms

référence f (plural références)[1]

Etymology

The TLFi treats it as formed from French référer + -ence, first recorded in Bescherelle in 1845–1846, and notes that the English noun, used for a referring to a book for information, is found from 1612.[2] Bloch and Wartburg and the GLLF also list it as a derivative of the verb (1845).[3][4] Rey and the Robert dictionaries instead take it as borrowed from English reference about 1820, used in Dumont's translations of Bentham and soon felt to be a derivative of the French verb.[5][6][7] The English word comes from refer, which represents Latin referō (“to bring back, refer”), the source of the French verb too.[5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Bescherelle (1845–1846) uses the plural for the persons from whom railway companies could get information on the solvency of those applying for shares.[2][5]

Semantic evolution

The plural références came to mean the information or testimonials about a person, especially one seeking a job (1865, Sainte-Beuve; 1870).[2][5] The general sense, the act of referring to an article or text, is recorded in 1868, and ouvrage de référence “reference work” in 1870.[2][5][4] Littré's Supplement of 1877 records it among cloth merchants for the book of samples of goods for sale.[2]

The word also names the act or means of situating something in relation to something else, as in geometry's système de référence.[5][7] The figurative ce n'est pas une référence means, by understatement, that someone or something is mediocre.[5] After English reference in logic and semiotics, linguistics uses it since about 1969 for the relation of a sign to what it denotes.[5]

Timeline

  • c. 1820 – Used in Dumont's translations of Bentham.[5][6]
  • 1845–1846 – Bescherelle records it.[2][3]
  • 1865 – Références “information on someone” in Sainte-Beuve.[2]
  • 1868 – The sense “act of referring to an article or passage”.[2]
  • 1870 – Ouvrage de référence.[5][4]
  • 1877 – Littré's Supplement records the cloth merchants' sense.[2]
  • c. 1969 – The linguistic sense appears.[5]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The act or means of situating something in relation to something else: par référence à; in geometry, système de référence, a frame of reference.[7][8][9]
  2. Something taken as a standard for comparison or evaluation: une année de référence.[7]
  3. The act of referring the reader to a text or an authority: faire référence à, ouvrage de référence.[7][10]
  4. An indication of a passage of a text (page, line) that allows one to find it, or the reference given at the head of a letter.[9][4]
  5. (plural) Information or testimonials about a person, especially an applicant for a job.[5][10]
  6. (linguistics) The relation of a sign to the reality it denotes.[5]

Word family

  • référencer

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Trésor de la langue française informatisé (2004), ATILF – CNRS & Université de Lorraine, atilf.fr/tlfi; electronic version of Imbs, Paul; Quemada, Bernard, eds. (1971–1994), Trésor de la langue française, Paris: CNRS / Gallimard
  3. ^ a b c Bloch, Oscar; Wartburg, Walther von (1989), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue française, 8th ed., Paris: Presses universitaires de France
  4. ^ a b c d Guilbert, Louis; Lagane, René; Niobey, Georges, eds. (1971–1978; 1989), Grand Larousse de la langue française, Paris: Larousse
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Rey, Alain, ed. (1992), Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  6. ^ a b Rey, Alain, ed. (2005), Le Grand Robert de la langue française, electronic version, Paris: Le Robert
  7. ^ a b c d e Rey-Debove, Josette; Rey, Alain, eds. (2007), Le Petit Robert de la langue française, Paris: Le Robert
  8. ^ Dictionnaire Le Robert en ligne, dictionnaire.lerobert.com (accessed 2024)
  9. ^ a b Dictionnaire de français Larousse, larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais (accessed 2024)
  10. ^ a b Littré, Émile (1873–1877), Dictionnaire de la langue française, 4 vols. and supplement, Paris: Hachette

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Référence.” Etymologically, 14 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/fr/r%C3%A9f%C3%A9rence. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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