Phrase guide

reference work

noun · 2 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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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A compendium of information which is not generally intended to be read from beginning to end but rather consulted on a spot basis, and is compiled for ease of reference; especially, a reference book, whether in print, digital, or both.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • a small-format reference work

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

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 book, reference, 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

From reference + work.

Across languages

Translations

25 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Mandarin: 工具書 /工具书 (gōngjùshū) — compendium of information
  • Chinese Mandarin: 參考書 /参考书 (cānkǎoshū) — compendium of information
  • Danish: opslagsværk — compendium of information
  • Dutch: naslagwerk — compendium of information
  • Finnish: hakuteos — compendium of information
  • French: ouvrage de référence — compendium of information
  • German: Nachschlagewerk — compendium of information
  • Italian: opera di riferimento — compendium of information
  • Italian: lavoro di consultazione — compendium of information
  • Japanese: 参考図書 (sankōtosho) — compendium of information
  • Kazakh: анықтамалық басылым (anyqtamalyq basylym) — compendium of information
  • Korean: 참고서 (chamgoseo) — compendium of information
  • Low German: Naokieksel — compendium of information
  • Norwegian Bokmål: oppslagsverk — compendium of information
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: oppslagsverk — compendium of information
  • Persian: کتاب مرجع — compendium of information
  • Polish: vademecum — compendium of information
  • Polish: informator — compendium of information
  • Polish: poradnik — compendium of information
  • Romanian: lucrare de referință — compendium of information
  • Romanian: compendiu de consultare — compendium of information
  • Russian: спра́вочный материа́л (správočnyj materiál) — compendium of information
  • Russian: спра́вочные материа́лы (správočnyje materiály) — compendium of information
  • Spanish: obra de referencia (usu. with plural "obras") — compendium of information
  • Thai: งานอ้างอิง — compendium of information