metareferential

Metareferential describes references, statements, or works that point to the act of referring itself or to the status of reference within language, discourse, or art. It denotes self-referentiality: materials that acknowledge their own mode of communication or the conditions under which they refer to things.

In linguistics and semiotics, metareferential devices involve metalinguistic commentary or self-referential propositions about meaning, naming, or truth conditions. For example, a sentence that comments on its own referential status or a discourse that explains how terms are being used can be described as metareferential. In literature, film, and other arts, metareferential or metafictional techniques disrupt the illusion of seamless representation by drawing attention to the artificiality of the work, addressing the reader or viewer, or exposing conventions of genre and narration.

Philosophically, metareferential concerns intersect with self-reference and the analysis of levels of discourse. They raise questions about how language refers to objects and to itself, and how meta-level statements relate to object-level content. Metareferentiality can give rise to paradoxes or playful critique when a statement asserts something about its own referential context.

Metareferential usage is distinct from simple reference or description, because its primary function is to illuminate or critique the act of referring. It is closely related to terms such as self-reference, metafiction, and metalinguistics, while occupying a specific role in discussions of how discourse refers to its own processes and status.