In general, a reference is something that refers to or designates something else, or acts as a connection or a link between two things. The objects it links may be concrete, such as books or locations, or abstract, such as data, thoughts, or memories. The object which is named by a reference, or to which the reference points, is the referent.
The term reference is used with different specialized meanings in a variety of fields, as follows:
Legal Information Institute - Primary legal materials and links to a wide array of U.S. and international legal reference websites. From Cornell Law School.
Meta Description: [ Legal information organized by topic and source from Cornell Law School. ]