Phrase guide

reference book

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A book providing factual information.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • The Red Book is the standard reference book for those naming inorganic chemical compounds.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sourcebook

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: reference work

2

noun

Meaning 2

A book that can be consulted in the library but cannot be borrowed.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Qualifier: library

Examples

  • I wanted to take out the encyclopedia, but the librarian said it was a reference book.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: book of reference

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

a book to which you can refer for authoritative facts

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • he contributed articles to the basic reference work on that topic

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: reference, reference work, book of facts

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: book

Narrower terms: cookbook, cookery book, instruction book, source book, wordbook, handbook, enchiridion, vade mecum, directory, annual, yearly, yearbook, atlas, book of maps, map collection, encyclopedia, cyclopedia, encyclopaedia, cyclopaedia

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

35 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: كِتَاب مَرْجِعِيّ (kitāb marjiʕiyy) — book providing factual information
  • Belarusian: даве́днік (davjédnik) — book providing factual information
  • Bulgarian: спра́вочник (správočnik) — book providing factual information
  • Chinese Mandarin: 參考書 /参考书 (cānkǎoshū) — book providing factual information
  • Chinese Mandarin: 工具書 /工具书 (gōngjùshū) — book providing factual information
  • Dutch: naslagwerk — book providing factual information
  • Estonian: teatmeteos — book providing factual information
  • Finnish: lähdeteos — book providing factual information
  • French: livre de référence — book providing factual information
  • German: Nachschlagewerk — book providing factual information
  • German: Referenzbuch — book providing factual information
  • Gujarati: સંદર્ભગ્રંથ (sandarbhagranth) — book providing factual information
  • Hungarian: segédkönyv — book providing factual information
  • Japanese: 参考書 (sankōsho) — book providing factual information
  • Korean: 참고서 (chamgoseo) — book providing factual information
  • Malayalam: ഗ്രന്ഥം (granthaṁ) — book providing factual information
  • Māori: pukatara — book providing factual information
  • Norwegian Bokmål: referansebok — book providing factual information
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: referansebok — book providing factual information
  • Portuguese: livro de consulta — book providing factual information
  • Russian: спра́вочник (správočnik) — book providing factual information
  • Scottish Gaelic: leabhar-fiosrachaidh — book providing factual information
  • Tagalog: sangguniang aklat — book providing factual information
  • Thai: หนังสืออ้างอิง (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ-âang-ing) — book providing factual information
  • Ukrainian: дові́дник (dovídnyk) — book providing factual information
  • Vietnamese: sách hướng dẫn — book providing factual information
  • Vietnamese: sách chỉ dẫn — book providing factual information
  • Chinese Mandarin: 參考書 /参考书 (cānkǎoshū) — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • Chinese Mandarin: 工具書 /工具书 (gōngjùshū) — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • Finnish: käsikirjaston kirja — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • German: Präsenzbestand — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • Norwegian Bokmål: referansebok — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: referansebok — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • Portuguese: livro de consulta — library: book that may not be borrowed
  • Tagalog: sangguniang aklat — library: book that may not be borrowed