refers

Refers is the third-person singular present tense of the verb refer. The primary senses are to point to or indicate something, to mention or cite something, or to relate something to a person, thing, or idea. In writing and speech, to refer to something is to use language that stands for or directs attention to that thing, rather than to describe it in detail.

Etymology traces refer back to Latin referre, meaning to bring back or report, and through Old French into English. The sense of mentioning or directing attention to something developed over time as the verb came into common use in the modern language.

Common uses include: referring to a source with to; for example, The article refers to a 2020 study. Referring to a thing or concept can be descriptive, as in The symbol refers to danger, or relational, as in Her remarks refer to a broader policy. The phrase to refer someone to a person or service means to direct them to an appropriate contact or resource, as in I will refer you to our customer service department.

In linguistics, refer relates to the idea of reference: the connection between a linguistic expression and its referent—the entity it stands for in context. This contrasts with mention, where the expression is talked about rather than used to denote its referent. Deixis, anaphora, and pronoun use are related concepts that organize how expressions refer within discourse.