REFERENT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does referent mean? 

• REFERENT (noun)
  The noun REFERENT has 3 senses:

1. something referred to; the object of a reference

2. the first term in a proposition; the term to which other terms relate

3. something that refers; a term that refers to another term

  Familiarity information: REFERENT used as a noun is uncommon.

• REFERENT (adjective)
  The adjective REFERENT has 1 sense:

1. having reference

  Familiarity information: REFERENT used as an adjective is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• REFERENT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Something referred to; the object of a reference

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("referent" is a kind of...):

import; meaning; significance; signification (the message that is intended or expressed or signified)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "referent"):

antecedent (the referent of an anaphor; a phrase or clause that is referred to by an anaphoric pronoun)

denotatum (an actual object referred to by a linguistic expression)

designatum (something (whether existing or not) that is referred to by a linguistic expression)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The first term in a proposition; the term to which other terms relate

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("referent" is a kind of...):

term (one of the substantive phrases in a logical proposition)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Something that refers; a term that refers to another term

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("referent" is a kind of...):

term (a word or expression used for some particular thing)

• REFERENT (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Having reference

Context example:

judgments referent to the indictment

Similar:

denotative; denotive (having the power of explicitly denoting or designating or naming)

Derivation:

reference (the most direct or specific meaning of a word or expression; the class of objects that an expression refers to)